“So, you basically basked in Ruohan’s glory,”
Chen Haiying’s gaze was complex, filled with envy but even more with jealousy. Her daughter had just graduated from college this year and was still job hunting, far from basking in any glory—she even had to chip in money every month.
And here her own sister had managed to drive a Rolls-Royce thanks to her daughter!
Both having daughters, why was the gap between them so wide? Not to mention she had a man, whereas her sister didn’t!
He subconsciously glanced at the man of his own household, Liu Changhe, whose face was naturally quite unsightly after being publicly humiliated.
He had actually harbored fantasies about his little sister-in-law, who was after all without a man. If one day she encountered some difficulties and turned to him, he could take the opportunity to make demands.
But now that she was driving a Rolls-Royce, his little fantasies had been utterly shattered. He hadn’t been able to take advantage when Chen Haiou was struggling, to say nothing now that her days were much better.
“Haiou, don’t stand downstairs anymore, let’s go up together!”
Chen Haiying grasped her sister’s arm, feigning great enthusiasm even though she was consumed with jealousy inside. If her niece, Chen Ruohan, really became a big star, she would indeed have to cling tightly to her sister’s coattails.
Being a star was lucrative and came with high social status. If she played her cards right, she might even get to share in the glow in the future.
“You guys go ahead.”
“I’ll go up after they finish sticking the decals. Some glues shouldn’t stick to the paint, after all, the paintwork is quite expensive, right, Brother-in-law?”
Chen Haiou threw another glance at Liu Changhe when she said this, but he just walked into the building without uttering a word.
“Haiou, you shouldn’t stoop to his level!”
“He doesn’t know anything!”
Chen Haiying didn’t follow inside. Instead, she stayed downstairs with her sister. Times had changed, and now her sister had struck it rich, so her attitude couldn’t remain as it once was. She also needed to try to mend their relationship as much as possible.
Chen Haiou certainly knew what kind of person her older sister was—no one understood better than she did the business of climbing up and kicking down, tailoring one’s sails to the wind. So, despite her inner disdain for her sister’s overtures, the sensation of being sought after was secretly pleasing, giving her the feeling of finally being able to hold her head high and breathe easy.
“Haiou, you just mentioned that Ruohan will be on TV, what show is it?”
Chen Haiying asked, curious.
“It’s that ‘My Idol’ show on Jiangcheng Satellite TV. However, the show is produced by Tianmei Media, which is the company Ruohan is signed with. So our Ruohan won’t do poorly, but I can’t say anymore…”
‘My Idol’ was about to start filming soon, and Yang Hao and Chen Haiou had mentioned it a few times in prior casual conversations.
Although Yang Hao didn’t specify what rank Chen Ruohan would achieve, just based on the relationship between her daughter and Yang Hao, not to mention winning first place, at least the top three seemed well within reach.
That was what Chen Haiou believed.
“Ruohan is really something. I always said when she was little that she inherited your artistic talent. Who would have thought she’d surpass the master!”
Even though Chen Haiying had no idea what an idol was, she still praised buoyantly with a smile.
However, her remarks weren’t entirely flattery; Little White Flower Chen Ruohan had indeed inherited her mother’s artistic genes.
The reason Chen Haiou didn’t let her daughter pursue an artistic path initially was based on her own life experiences. She knew that walking the path of art without money or connections could be too arduous.
But genes are a powerful thing. Even after attending an ordinary undergraduate college, Chen Ruohan ultimately took the artistic route.
Fortunately, she met Yang Hao just as she was starting out!
The sisters stood downstairs chatting intermittently, and before long, a group of people surrounded Wang Xiaogang as they came down from the building.
“Aunt, we’re going to head to the new house first, sorry for the trouble of having you drive me there.”
Wang Xiaogang said politely to Chen Haiou.
“Get in the car.”
“Today, I’m here to serve you, so no need for politeness!”
Chen Haiou had a good impression of her nephew Wang Xiaogang; even though he wasn’t very capable, he was very respectful toward her.
“Haiou, you didn’t eat this morning, did you?”
“I brought you some milk, eggs, and sausages, just make do with a bite.”
Chen Haiyan handed over a plastic bag, showing her thoughtful consideration.
Wang Decai followed behind the crowd, standing with Liu Changhe. The two brothers-in-law were both sneakily glancing at their sister-in-law Chen Haiou with the corners of their eyes, but neither dared to approach her for a chat.
Shanshui Manor.
Chen Ruohan applied a faux-natural light makeup, changed into a brand-new goose yellow dress, and donned a pair of clean white shoes on her feet. This outfit perfectly complemented her Little White Flower demeanor, making her look youthful, beautiful, and with a hint of modesty.
She waited at the entrance of the community for a moment, and soon a brand-new purple Maserati Presidente slowly came to a stop beside her.
Chen Ruohan was puzzled, when her dearly thought of Mr. Yang stepped out of the car.
“Mr. Yang, did you buy another new car?”
Little White Flower, with a glowing smile, clung to her Uncle Yang’s arm.
“It’s definitely a new car,”
“but this one’s for you.”
“Go on and give it a try!”
Driving the Cullinan to school was too flashy, so Yang Hao bought Little White Flower a Maserati Presidente.
Of course, Mr. Yang also had dual considerations. It was inconvenient for mother and daughter to share a car, and he couldn’t outright give Chen Haiou a car, but buying one for Little White Flower, Chen Ruohan, was no problem at all.
And no matter which car Chen Ruohan drove, she would always leave one available for Chen Haiou.
So, Yang Hao seemed to be buying a car for Little White Flower, Chen Ruohan, but in actuality, he was indirectly providing a car for Ou.
“Ah, it’s a gift for me!”
Chen Ruohan was naturally very surprised. The Rolls-Royce Cullinan was too imposing for her, and she felt somewhat incapable of handling it; plus, driving it to school was indeed too ostentatious.
This Maserati Presidente, although also a luxury car worth over a million, was much more low-key than the Cullinan.
Chen Ruohan first walked around the Maserati Presidente a couple of times, then happily settled into the driver’s seat.
Yang Hao took the passenger seat and carefully guided Little White Flower on how to operate the vehicle.
Then Chen Ruohan, driving the car, took him to the wedding venue of Wang Xiaogang.
Xi Deng Grand Hotel.
This is a well-established five-star hotel, where Wang Decai booked the wedding banquet to save face; of course, he picked the cheapest option available.
Right now, the banquet hall was already filled with over two hundred guests, with the majority being colleagues of Wang Decai and Chen Haiyan, as both had worked in the factory for most of their lives and knew a lot of people.
The rest were family and friends. Wang Decai’s side and Chen Haiyan’s side both had numerous brothers and sisters; counting the younger generation, the two families together had dozens of members.
At this moment, the wedding car hadn’t arrived at the hotel yet. The banquet hall was in a chaotic state, with acquainted relatives gathered in groups, chatting away—elders discussing elder’s matters, and the younger generation talked about their own.
“Why hasn’t Ruohan arrived yet?”
Liu Changhe’s daughter, Liu Yuanyuan, looked around and, not seeing her cousin Chen Ruohan, asked casually.
“I sent her a WeChat message; she said she’s on the way.”
The one who replied was Chen Ruohan’s third uncle’s daughter, named Tian Yali. She was a year older than Liu Yuanyuan and was already working. She brought her boyfriend along to the wedding, who had a buzz cut and was wearing a thick gold chain around his neck as thick as a little finger, conspicuously pulled out from his neckline for all to see.
“I heard from my mom that Ruohan seems to have signed with some entertainment company, and maybe she’ll become a big star before long. When she arrives later, we must take a photo with her to keep!”
Liu Yuanyuan spoke cheerfully.
“Really, signed with an entertainment company? That’s impressive!”
Tian Yali showed a surprised expression.
Meanwhile, her boyfriend spoke up, “There are so many entertainment companies nowadays, a mixed bag of good and bad. Lili, your cousin might have been tricked by someone!”
“No way, they said it’s a very big entertainment company!” Liu Yuanyuan said.
“Sister, you’re just too naïve!”
“Nowadays, which company doesn’t claim to be legitimate or to have a large scale??”
Wang Shuai said disdainfully, then subconsciously touched the gold chain under his neck and continued, “Being a star or whatever, it’s better to sign with our company and become an online celebrity, live-streaming and selling products!”
“As long as she has a good image, we can definitely make her popular!”
“Ruohan seems to have an account on Kuaiyin with two or three hundred thousand followers!” Liu Yuanyuan said.
“What a perfect fit for signing with our company, then!”
“If she can grow her account to two or three hundred thousand followers by herself, with our help, that could easily reach the level of two or three million followers!”
“Sister, do you know how much money a live-streamer with two or three million followers can make?”
Wang Shuai boasted.
Liu Yuanyuan, who was genuinely curious about the income of online celebrities, asked subconsciously, “How much money can they make?”
“Well, actually, there’s a big difference depending on the field, but as long as you follow me, an annual income of a million is very easy…”
As he spoke, Wang Shuai sized up Liu Yuanyuan again, “Actually, you’re also not bad. Have you considered being a live-streamer with us?”
“Ah, can I do it?”
Liu Yuanyuan was at most above-average looking, not exactly a beauty, so the idea of becoming a live-streamer had never crossed her mind.
“What’s there to doubt? With today’s technology, you have a good foundation; with just a bit of packaging from us, there will definitely be no problem…”
As Wang Shuai spit out his pitch, Liu Yuanyuan, who was looking for a job, was truly tempted.
The main attraction was the annual salary of a million that Wang Shuai had just mentioned!
“Brother Wang, am I really suited for this image??” Liu Yuanyuan still felt unsure.
“You are, absolutely!!”
Wang Shuai’s eyes lit up excitedly as he spoke.
However, Liu Yuanyuan had the feeling that his excitement wasn’t actually about her; following his gaze, she then saw her cousin Chen Ruohan!
Liu Yuanyuan frowned slightly and looked at Wang Shuai with a sense of grievance; so your excitement was all because you saw someone else!
“Yuanyuan, Lili, you both arrived so early.”
Chen Ruohan walked over and greeted her two older cousins with a smile.
“It’s you who’s late.”
“If you had been any later, the wedding car would have arrived!” Tian Yali replied.
“Lili, aren’t you going to introduce us to this beauty?”
Wang Shuai said eagerly.
“My cousin Chen Ruohan.”
“Ruohan, this is my boyfriend Wang Shuai, you can just call him Brother Wang.”
Tian Yali made the introductions on the spot.
“Nice to meet you, Ruohan.”
“I’m an agent from Youhe Media; I heard you have two or three hundred thousand fans on Kuaiyin. Are you interested in joining our company?”
“I guarantee that your follower count could increase ten-fold, and making a million a year won’t be a problem!”
Wang Shuai said enthusiastically.
“Sorry, Brother Wang, I’m not interested in becoming an online celebrity.”
“And I’ve already signed with an entertainment company!”
Chen Ruohan politely declined.
“I just heard about that, you signed with an entertainment company!”
“But, brother, I have to remind you, the entertainment industry is full of mix-ups, and there are many companies out there specifically to scam girls like you!”
“By the way, what’s the name of the company you signed with? Let’s see if I know them!”
As Wang Shuai spoke, his gaze lingered on Chen Ruohan, growing more and more enthusiastic. Working for a company that incubated online celebrities, he saw plenty of pretty girls, but even compared to Chen Ruohan, there was a difference.
Hmm, such a pretty little beauty, it’d be a waste if she isn’t conned into being an online celebrity!!