The Cannon Fodder 'Seme' is the Center of Attention Again (Quick Transmigration) - Chapter 41

“When you see the big boss later, apart from greeting him, you do not need to say anything. Leave everything to me. Once I have pinned the whole thing on Qin Yanyun, you can come forward and symbolically admit fault. It is mostly to show the boss your attitude. Do not feel resentful if your salary or bonus is docked; I will help you make it back from Qin Yanyun.”

Brother Zhang paused, then added, “Our main goal in going there now is to let the big boss vent his anger and withdraw the decision to fire you.”

Li Qingran naturally had no objections to Brother Zhang’s plan. He was merely a bit curious about this big boss.

“Why does he want to fire me?”

“Does the person in charge of Jingyue Entertainment need a reason to fire someone?”

Brother Zhang shrugged at Li Qingran, then let out a sigh.

“It is mainly because you just started working and do not quite understand the rules of the workplace yet. Take this incident for example. Out of the three people in the center of the public opinion, Chu Yu is not from our company, so we cannot control him. Qin Yanyun is currently the company’s pillar, so it is impossible to lower his popularity to eliminate the impact of the public opinion on the company. So, if you want this matter to disappear from the public eye faster and more effectively, besides removing hot searches and pushing other news up, is there any more convenient way?”

Li Qingran pursed his lips.

Brother Zhang continued, “The fastest and most convenient way is to reduce the exposure of the person with the least influence among the three to the absolute minimum.”

“As long as he stops appearing, the public will naturally forget him after a while. The incident caused by him will also be archived as old news by the internet.”

Brother Zhang said, “It is true that the internet has a memory, but as long as no one mentions it, the update speed of that memory is very fast.”

Li Qingran nodded in understanding. “So the big boss wants to fire me because of that?”

“That is part of the reason.” Brother Zhang turned the steering wheel to the right, his gaze fixed ahead.

“But it is mostly because he dislikes trouble. While solving a problem, he also likes to solve the person who created the problem.”

Brother Zhang glanced at Li Qingran and said, “For bosses like them who deal with millions every minute, there are too many usable people under them. There are also plenty of people outside who want to enter the company. So when someone makes a mistake, their first thought is not to give that person time to correct it, but to fire them directly, giving them no chance for a second mistake.”

Li Qingran: ” ”

He lowered his eyes to look at his clasped hands on his lap, his thumbs rubbing against each other. His long, thick eyelashes trembled slightly, as if he were frightened by Brother Zhang’s words.

In reality, Li Qingran was just confirming with 888 the identity of this big boss in the original plot.

“He is considered a major antagonist in this small world. He placed many obstacles on the path of Qin Yanyun and Chu Yu’s relationship. After all, the two companies are competitors. As a capitalist, he certainly does not like the products under his control running off with artists from another company.”

Li Qingran nodded in understanding. After a moment of thought, he asked another question, “Does he count as a major character?”

“He definitely does!” 888 said, adding a bit of gossip for Li Qingran.

“And based on some small bits of information the Main System revealed to me beforehand, this big boss is a bit of a pervert. He has an extremely strong desire for control and particularly dislikes it when the people or things he has arranged go wrong. It makes him feel very uncomfortable. Especially when things keep worsening, he is likely to take extreme measures to realign the person or matter toward the direction he wants them to go.”

In the original plot, after Qin Yanyun and Chu Yu fell in love, the thought of leaving the entertainment industry surfaced. This ruined the big boss’s plan for his subsequent development, leading the boss to detest their relationship. He kept trying to sabotage it, which only triggered Qin Yanyun’s desire to quit even more fiercely. After several cycles of this negative loop, the big boss eventually took action against Chu Yu.

That was also the biggest internet-wide blacklisting Chu Yu suffered in the plot. Not only did his career hit rock bottom, but even his relatives left him. However, during this process, because Qin Yanyun never abandoned him, their relationship made a qualitative leap.

If Li Qingran’s task as cannon fodder was to make Chu Yu and Qin Yanyun realize their feelings, then the big boss’s role was to make those feelings even more steadfast. After all, the two protagonists in a novel always have to experience one or two moments of shared hardship to highlight their firm determination to choose each other.

Li Qingran blinked and said nothing more, though a thoughtful expression crossed his face.

Seeing this, 888 did not say anything more. Partly because that was all it knew, and partly because it usually played the role of an observer. Unless necessary, it would not force its presence when the host did not need it. After all, 888 was not a system with a strong career drive.

Thus, after the brief exchange, the human and the system fell into silence. On the side, seeing that Li Qingran remained quiet, Brother Zhang thought he was still worried about meeting the big boss and said:

“Relax, I will not let him fire you that easily.”

Hearing this, Li Qingran turned to look at Brother Zhang. The latter kept his eyes on the road, focusing on driving, and did not look back at Li Qingran, only speaking softly:

“The only thing you did wrong in this matter was not returning to the dressing room immediately after buying ice cream and slacking off outside for a bit. Other than that, everything else was Qin Yanyun’s own doing. If we are talking about faults, his mistake is much bigger.”

Li Qingran asked, “But Brother Zhang, did you not just say that the boss does not care about right or wrong, only about who is more convenient to deal with?”

“That is true.” Brother Zhang turned and smiled at Li Qingran.

“But if you have no fault at all, what reason does he have to fire you? Even a boss needs to be reasonable, right?”

Li Qingran blinked twice.

Brother Zhang turned back and continued, “So you do not need to worry. I will push all the blame for this matter onto Qin Yanyun alone.”

Li Qingran: “???”

Did Qin Yanyun agree to this?

“Whether Qin Yanyun agrees or not is irrelevant. He did not come along anyway. My mouth is on my face, so how the story is told is up to me alone.”

Brother Zhang anticipated Li Qingran’s question and explained proactively before he could hesitantly ask.

“Besides, even if he knew, he would not object.”

After all, Brother Zhang could not help but glance at the boy sitting obediently in the passenger seat again. Sensing the gaze, the latter looked up and gave him a smile.

On this night when the moon was hidden, the light around them was a blend of neon lights from both sides of the road. The hallucinatory colors made everything around them hazy, and even the smile on Li Qingran’s face became ethereal.

Facing a face like this all day, it was indeed hard not to fall in love.

But the problem was, Brother Zhang gripped the steering wheel tightly. He held it in for a moment, but finally could not resist.

“Xiao Li, can I ask you a question?”

Li Qingran blinked and replied obediently, “Of course, Brother Zhang. Go ahead.”

“You,” A look of hesitation appeared on Brother Zhang’s face, and only after a moment did he continue, “What do you think of your Brother Qin?”

Qin Yanyun, consider this my apology for throwing you under the bus!

With that thought, Brother Zhang became even more curious about the answer in Li Qingran’s mind. If he did not have to drive, Brother Zhang would have wanted to grab Li Qingran’s hands, look him in the eye, and solemnly receive a sincere evaluation of Qin Yanyun from his mouth.

However, Brother Zhang was so cautious about the question, yet he only received one sentence from Li Qingran.

“Brother Qin? Brother Qin is quite a good person.”

Brother Zhang: ” ”

Does this count as giving Qin Yanyun a good person card?

He tightened his grip on the steering wheel, a thoughtful expression on his face. Finally, he decided to try once more for Qin Yanyun’s sake.

“Is he just a good person?”

“Well,” Hearing this, Li Qingran lowered his head and began to think seriously. Only after a moment did he reply:

“Brother Qin is very outstanding. His acting is good, and he is handsome. He is very professional as an actor and is willing to learn to make himself better. Although his temper is a bit unpredictable, it comes and goes quickly. He is very generous to me and Brother Xiao Wen and usually takes good care of us. At his core, he is a very gentle person.”

“Then you,” Brother Zhang immediately wanted to ask if Li Qingran could fall in love with someone like Qin Yanyun. However, before he could even get two words out, the phone used for navigation began to vibrate. The next second, a call related to another artist under Brother Zhang popped up.

“Tch!”

Brother Zhang was clearly impatient, but since that person was still under his management and had a bit of a background, he had no choice but to answer. He frowned and said in a cold voice:

“What is it?”

The little assistant on the other end tremblingly told Brother Zhang the whole story.

Actually, it was not entirely the artist’s fault, but the primary responsibility was definitely his. Otherwise, the assistant would not have been so panicked as to call him.

Brother Zhang also gained a new understanding of the person’s ability to cause trouble. After getting a general idea of the matter, before the assistant could even finish speaking, his tone spiked.

“He is just the second male lead, can he not just act his part honestly? He actually discussed the scenes with the director to add more for himself and reduce the lead’s scenes? Setting aside where he gets the face to do that, can he even understand the script?!”

“This can only be said to be brainless. Here is what you,” Brother Zhang said halfway through, hearing the shouting on the other end of the phone, he thought about it and let out a helpless sigh.

“Forget it. I will head over there now. You just said that manager over there has already arrived, right?”

“Yes, actually they did not just arrive. Their benefactor happened to come for a site visit today,”

Well, that was just great!

When two people with backgrounds clash, it all comes down to whose background is stronger.

Brother Zhang was speechless and could only park the car at the entrance of Jingyue Entertainment. He said to Li Qingran:

 

“You go up to our office and wait first. I will go over there to handle his situation and try to be back within an hour. Then, I will take you to see the big boss.”

 

“Is that okay?” Li Qingran asked worriedly. “Will it be bad to make the big boss wait for us?”

 

Would that not make the big boss even angrier?

 

“It will not!” Brother Zhang unbuckled his seatbelt and rolled his eyes.

 

“That little ancestor happens to be our big boss’s younger brother.”

 

Otherwise, why would a gold-medal manager with so many Movie Kings and Queens under him need to babysit a rookie who does nothing but stir up trouble!

 

Brother Zhang got angry just thinking about it, and he found the big boss even more annoying now. Truly, not only did he cause trouble daily, but now he even wanted to fire one of his people!

 

Brother Zhang decided that he would tell the big boss about his brother’s troublemaking later. That way, he would have more leverage when he took Li Qingran up to admit fault.

 

No sooner said than done; Brother Zhang pulled out his phone to call the big boss. At the same time, he comforted Li Qingran, who was getting out of the car with him:

 

“It is fine, do not worry. You go up first, and I will be back in a bit.”

 

“Okay,” Li Qingran nodded obediently, pursed his lips, and then added: “I am really troubling you, Brother Zhang.”

 

“Psh, saying that makes us sound like strangers!”

 

Brother Zhang waved his hand with a smile. “I am not just doing this for you. An assistant this useful even if Qin Yanyun were willing to let you go, I certainly would not be.”

 

One had to know that when Li Qingran first started, besides his daily work with Qin Yanyun, he used his free time to organize various backlogged documents for Brother Zhang. He even set up a program to process work faster and handled all sorts of trivial tasks. Occasionally, when Brother Zhang was short on time, he would even help follow up on other artists’ work, even during his rest hours.

 

This not only significantly improved Brother Zhang’s efficiency but also gave him more time to slack off. Therefore, for the sake of helping him slack off alone, Brother Zhang would never let the big boss fire him.

 

Brother Zhang smiled and waved Li Qingran away, telling him to wait upstairs.

 

Li Qingran watched Brother Zhang’s car disappear into the traffic before turning to walk toward the company. He rarely came here, usually staying at Qin Yanyun’s personal studio, so he was unfamiliar with the lobby. Additionally, Jingyue had recently undergone major renovations, so Li Qingran spent a good amount of time just finding the elevator.

 

“Maybe by the time I get up there and the sofa is barely warm, Brother Zhang will notify me to come down and meet him,” Li Qingran joked lightheartedly with 888 as he pressed the elevator button.

 

He did not seem particularly worried about being fired. It was mostly because worrying was useless; if the other party insisted on firing him, as a powerless worker, Li Qingran could only accept it. He just wondered if the big boss would agree to let him follow Qin Yanyun to the filming first to finish the plot before resigning.

 

If possible, he could even waive the severance pay. Li Qingran was thinking that if Brother Zhang’s plea failed, he would say exactly that.

 

Just then, the elevator door opened with a “ding.” Li Qingran lowered his head and instinctively stepped inside. To his surprise, before he could take more than a step, he was barked at by someone inside:

 

“Hey! Why are you coming in here?!”

 

?

 

Was that a serious question? Why come in? To take the elevator upstairs, of course! What else would he be doing—pressing the buttons for fun?

 

Li Qingran looked up in a daze and met the gaze of one of the only two people in the elevator. The man was wearing a sharp, tailored suit, with a pale face and dark eyes. His entire being radiated the overbearing aura of a powerful superior.

 

Li Qingran blinked and said honestly, “I want to go upstairs.”

 

The man who met Li Qingran’s gaze did not speak, but the man standing beside him frowned and said:

 

“This is the CEO’s private elevator. Use the staff elevator.”

 

“Oh, okay.”

 

Hearing this, Li Qingran immediately took a step back, an apologetic smile quickly appearing on his face.

 

“I am sorry. I have not been to the company in a long time and did not know. I will leave now—”

 

“No need.”

 

Before Li Qingran could fully exit, the silent man suddenly spoke:

 

“Come in. We will go up together.”

 

The man who had just tried to shoo Li Qingran away was stunned, but he was clearly perceptive. He did not ask the silent man why; he simply held the closing door open and said to Li Qingran:

 

“Come in.”

 

“But…” Li Qingran looked hesitantly at the silent man, who had already looked away.

 

The assistant who had initially shooed him spoke up again:

 

“No buts. Get in. Do not waste President Qin’s time.”

 

“Alright then.”

 

Li Qingran had no choice but to pull back his retreating leg and step into the elevator. Once he was steady, he did not forget to thank the silent man:

 

“Thank you, President Qin.”

 

The man did not reply. It was only when the assistant asked Li Qingran which floor he was going to that the man spoke again:

 

“Just bring him directly to my office.”

 

“???” “!!!”

 

Li Qingran and the assistant both looked at Qin Zechuan in unison. Both were wide-eyed, but while Li Qingran was confused, the assistant was purely shocked.

 

Wait, what was happening?! Was this still the President Qin he knew—the one who only cared about work and was uninterested in anyone, male or female? Letting someone ride his private elevator and then taking them straight to his office?

 

What was he trying to do? Even if an old tree were to bloom, it did not have to be this aggressive! At the very least, should he not ask the young man’s opinion?

 

The assistant’s mind raced, and his gaze instinctively fell on Li Qingran.

 

Upon closer inspection, the assistant understood a little why his boss’s “iron tree” had suddenly bloomed after just one glance. The young man standing quietly in the corner was wearing a black casual set. Under the overhead lights, his face was flawless, and his features appeared even more defined. His peach-blossom eyes tilted up slightly; even when looking at someone with shock and confusion, they seemed to carry a trace of unintended affection.

 

Which manager had signed this rookie? With looks like that, he would cause a storm in the entertainment industry the moment he debuted. No wonder his boss wanted to whisk him into the office immediately.

 

Strike while the iron is hot! The assistant expressed his understanding.

 

On the other side, Qin Zechuan, sensing the assistant’s ambiguous gaze, immediately frowned and countered:

 

“What are you all looking at me for? Are you not Qin Yanyun’s assistant? Zhang Cheng said he was bringing you to see me. Where is he?”

 

“Brother Zhang had an emergency, so he told me to come up first. He said he would come to see you with me after he handles it,” Li Qingran said honestly.

 

Qin Zechuan gave a cold laugh. “So, he wants me to wait for him? You…”

 

His gaze swept across Li Qingran’s face before he abruptly looked away. His voice suddenly dropped, as if suppressing anger or perhaps hiding some other emotion.

 

Qin Zechuan coughed twice and continued: “I do not have time to wait for him. Come up and explain the situation to me yourself.”

 

“But Brother Zhang said—”

 

“Is he the boss, or am I?” Before Li Qingran could finish, Qin Zechuan interrupted him.

 

“You need to be clear about who is paying your salary. Besides, the final decision-making power in this matter lies with me. It has no direct connection to Zhang Cheng. Why must you wait for him to come?”

 

Li Qingran: ” “

 

That was because it was easier for Zhang Cheng to throw Qin Yanyun under the bus, whereas he could not! But since the big boss had put it that way, Li Qingran feared that if he kept refusing, the man would strip him of his chance to speak and kick him out of Jingyue Entertainment entirely.

 

So, after a few seconds of hesitation, Li Qingran nodded slowly.

 

“I will do as you say, President Qin.”

 

The corner of the man’s mouth turned up almost imperceptibly. The assistant, still in a state of self-reproach for misinterpreting the boss’s thoughts, did not notice. Li Qingran, worried about what he would say later, did not notice either.

 

And Brother Zhang, far away at the filming base dealing with the mess, definitely did not notice.

 

After quickly solving the disaster caused by the “little ancestor,” Brother Zhang rushed back to his car and pulled out his phone. Just as he was about to call Li Qingran to say he was heading back, he finally saw the messages that had arrived half an hour ago.

 

One was from Li Qingran: “Brother Zhang, the big boss said he is not planning to fire me anymore.”

 

The other was from the big boss he both loved and hated: “Pack up your things and have Li Qingran come work for me.”