I Think Highly Of Her
Meng Fu did not say anything in response. She did not know much about Ye Shuning, but when Tang Ze said that she used to participate in youth singing contests, she knew that Ye Shuning indeed had ability. People who graduated from youth singing contests were different from people who emerged from talent shows. They were the top seedlings who would become the future’s artists.
Tang Ze was not exaggerating when he said that she was a “big shot” who had participated in youth singing contests. Each of the four mentors thought highly of different trainees. They had divided opinions of who would emerge stronger. For example, Wen Yu and Tang Ze thought highly of Meng Fu. However, the four mentors were in complete agreement that Ye Shuning was the person to watch.
Meng Fu was not surprised by this.
“Of course, you shouldn’t undervalue yourself because of this and you don’t have to compare yourself with her.” Tang Ze smiled, his expression friendly and gentle. “Mentor Xi and I can’t compare with her. She has a real talent gifted from heaven. You are very talented as well. It is not easy to survive in the entertainment industry, but I think highly of you.”
Meng Fu had ranked fourth in the online polls. That had been pre-arranged by the program crew. However, she did have some fans who supported her online.
Tang Ze corrected some of her pronunciation problems. Meng Fu tried practicing and realized that she was much better now. It was indeed easier to have a mentor to guide her.
“Mentor Tang, do you have a voice problem?” Meng Fu took notes on the last point that he mentioned and looked up.
Her face had exquisite features and a small dimple on the left when she smiled.
Tang Ze was sitting on a chair. He held a thermos flask in one hand and a notebook in the other. Hearing these words, he turned his head sideways to look at Meng Fu, saying lightly, “It’s a chronic problem. It’s okay.”
“Alright.” Meng Fu put the notebook in her pocket. She understood what he meant. She bowed to Tang Ze with a smile, a well-behaved and delicate look on her face. “Thank you, Mentor.”
Tang Ze, who was still holding the thermos flask, did not quite understand what Meng Fu meant when she said “alright.”
“Has she left?” After Meng Fu left, Tang Ze’s manager came in from the outside, glanced in the direction she had left in, and raised his eyebrows.
“Yeah.” Tang Ze coughed softly. “She is really talented. Don’t underestimate her just because she is the fourth most popular trainee. By the time we form a group for the last performance, I believe she will surpass Nan Qiu to take the second spot.”
The manager glanced at Tang Ze and said nothing.
**
In the studio at the training camp.
Su Di handed the documents to Zhao Fan.
Zhao Fan took a look, and saw the Level B contract on top of the documents. She paused before saying, “This…”
“Pass it to your boss.” Su Di did not know about Su Cheng’s plan, but he trusted Su Cheng’s judgment. “One can only profit from offering Ms. Meng a contract.”
Upon hearing this, Zhao Fan thought deeply. Tianle Media had never formally signed a contract with Meng Fu. Back then, the Jiang family had invested money so that Meng Fu could enter the entertainment industry. Most people believed that she was merely fooling around and the company did not take her seriously either.
Meng Fu was still an unknown artist despite two years of effort. She had a small number of fans, but other than that, most people were die-hard haters. The main reason was that, apart from her looks, Meng Fu did not have any other skills. Moreover, her actions usually resulted in a string of criticism. It was difficult for an artist who had not finished high school to have any achievements in the entertainment industry. There was no future for her.
Therefore, Tianle Media did not really have a plan for Meng Fu. It was only after Zhao Fan recruited Su Cheng as her assistant a year ago that they had seen an uptick in resources, subsequently participated in Best Idol.
This was one of the reasons why Zhao Fan had always been in awe of Su Cheng. Zhao Fan was deep in thought upon hearing Su Di’s words. Meng Fu’s last performance had really moved her. There was also the previous evaluation as well…
Zhao Fan was not a newcomer, she had worked hard in the entertainment industry for 15 years. She could still tell if a person could become popular or not. If Meng Fu maintained her current standard, she would ask the company to provide more resources to Meng Fu.
“I understand.” Zhao Fan took the documents from Su Di. “You can tell Brother Cheng not to worry.”
Meng Fu came looking for Zhao Fan after her lessons with Tang Ze. Zhao Fan was in the midst of contacting Tianle Media.
“Ah, perfect timing.” Zhao Fan gathered her stuff and put her bag on the table. “I’m going back to the company and I might bring back good news for you.”
“Oh.” Meng Fu did not ask what the good news was. She yawned lazily. “Bring me something on your way back. In my study room, there is a box with black paper pasted on it in the third drawer on the left of my study desk.”
She threw a key to Zhao Fan.
“Okay.” Zhao Fan knew that Meng Fu was referring to her study room at Yizhong.
**
Tianle Media.
“Manager An, Manager Zhao wants to talk to you.” Manager An’s assistant knocked on the door and came in with a document.
“Manager Zhao?” Manager An raised his head.
The assistant replied respectfully, “Zhao Fan.”
Manager An pressed the mouse button without moving his eyes. “I’m going to see Brother Qian later.”
Brother Qian, the famed manager of Tianle Media, had helped several A-listers rise to fame. Even Manager An had to greet Tianle Media’s prized manager as “Brother Qian.” He had always been at the Beijing headquarters. Now that he had suddenly been assigned to T City, Manager An made sure to be very mindful and treated him with respect.
“I understand.” The assistant understood his implied meaning.
He left without making any noise and closed the office door.
“Sorry, Sister Zhao.” The assistant smiled apologetically at Zhao Fan. “Manager An is attending to an important guest and he has no time right now. If you have anything to hand to him, you can pass it to me directly.”
Zhao Fan smiled bitterly. She knew that she was no longer as powerful as she had been in the past, and that her words were taken lightly. “Please hand this document to Manager An.”
It was a document compiled by Su Cheng, analyzing Meng Fu’s future position in the industry. After reading this document, Zhao Fan finally had mustered the courage to go to the head office. Su Cheng was simply a genius manager.
“Okay.” The assistant smiled. “I will definitely pass it to him.”
After Zhao Fan left, the assistant scanned through the document curiously, before entering the office respectfully and handing it to Manager An.
“Meng Fu? Best Idol?” After listening to the assistant’s explanation, Manager An frowned slightly and repeated the name. He did not have any impression of her. The company had in fact discussed the “Best Idol” show in board meeting recently. They had analyzed the potential of Ye Shuning, Nan Qiu, and several others, but he had never heard of Meng Fu. He nodded indifferently. “I got it.”
He dismissed the assistant. He then threw the document aside.