Chapter 276

"General Qin, how do you feel?"

After hanging up the phone, Yan Li looked at Qin Lan sitting in his executive chair and smiled as he asked.

Qin Lan leaned back in the executive chair, spun around once, and nodded solemnly.

"Not bad."

In other circumstances, Yan Li would have already been making suggestive remarks to take advantage of General Qin, but with Hu Ya and others present, he merely smiled and turned to look at the group.

"So, what do you think of Yi'an's new headquarters?"

Hu Ya, the classic brown-noser: "Not just not bad—it's fantastic! If I could work here, I'd wake up laughing in my dreams every night."

This flattery was over the top; Liu Yun nearly rolled her eyes, but she had to admit Yi'an's new base was indeed impressive, exuding serious prestige.

Li Xiaolu was even more direct, pointing to an unassuming door in the corner and asking.

"What's that? A bathroom?"

Qin Lan's expression subtly changed, her cheeks slightly flushed; Yan Li remained perfectly calm.

"It's not just a bathroom—it also has a rest room. When you're tired from work or need a nap at lunch, you can sleep here."

"Can we take a look?"

"Of course."

Yan Li nodded readily, but Qin Lan grew restless and stood up too, planning to intervene if anything seemed amiss.

Everyone was curious about the rest room; when they opened the door, they found Yan Li had understated it—inside was unexpectedly luxurious.

It was furnished like a five-star hotel king-size room: a king bed, wardrobe, TV—all present. The bathroom had dry and wet zones separated, plus a shower, larger than some of their own homes' bathrooms.

Qin Lan's worries were entirely unnecessary—every day, a dedicated staff member cleaned it spotless, as if no one had ever stayed there.

"So comfortable."

Hu Ya sat on the bed, testing the mattress's bounce; Li Xiaolu sensed something odd, stepped out, closed the door, and listened closely, her expression turning strange.

"Soundproofed?"

"Yeah."

Beside them, Yan Li looked perfectly at ease—after all, the rest room was for sleeping; adding soundproofing to ensure quiet was perfectly normal.

Although Qin Lan saw everything in the rest room was normal, she recalled the night she'd come to deliver food, and still felt embarrassed. She half-coaxed, half-dragged Hu Ya and the others out.

"I still have some work. If you want to tour the company, find Zhang Qing—she's Hu Ya's assistant. I'll join you for dinner once I'm done."

"Isn't Hu Ya here?"

Qin Lan had wanted to ask earlier—normally, when she came, either Hu Ya or Yan Li's assistant Ding Feng greeted her, but today someone else was there.

"She's taking an exam today."

"An exam?"

Qin Lan looked confused; Yan Li smiled: "You think being my President's Office Director is easy?"

Back when the company was small, Hu Ya, relying on seniority and your trust, got away with acting like a petty court official.

Now the company has grown, her position has been elevated, and all duties in the President's Office have become increasingly formalized.

Even though you value loyalty most, Hu Ya can't survive on loyalty alone—she needs real professional competence, or one day she might be sidelined by her own subordinates.

So Hu Ya signed up for multiple training courses and study programs, and even took several certification exams. Today, she took official leave specifically to take the test.

Yan Li fully supported this.

Whether Hu Ya actually learns anything is secondary—the key is showing a willingness to learn and improve, demonstrating effort for the company's future.

Even if you, as boss, don't care, your colleagues seeing those real certificates and diplomas will have fewer doubts.

Hu Ya is a veteran of the company, with both meritorious achievements and hard work; you want her to hold the position of President's Office Director long-term.

But the company is growing, internal competition is intensifying, and many are eager to climb up—relying solely on past achievements, you can protect her for now, but not forever.

Hearing this, Qin Lan fell into thought—Hu Ya is improving; should she, too, find time to enroll in some courses?

Yan Li is advancing too fast; if she doesn't upgrade herself, she truly feels insecure.

…

Not wanting to disturb Yan Li's work, the group decided to tour Yi'an's new headquarters instead.

But there wasn't much to see.

Since Yi'an has a Hengdian base, some operations and work are handled there.

For example, studios, rehearsal halls, post-production editing, costume and prop storage—all the major operations, especially for historical dramas, are in Hengdian; Yi'an's headquarters is comparatively limited.

So Yi'an's headquarters mainly consists of various offices, meeting rooms, and reception areas.

The only difference from a normal company is a few additional rooms with film and entertainment functions: screening rooms, media centers, styling and makeup rooms—that's all.

After touring, what interested them most was the company's lounge.

It offers coffee, tea, drinks, and snacks for employees to rest and chat when tired; reportedly, afternoon tea or late-night snacks are provided every few days, all free.

What surprised Qin Lan and the others was that there were actually a few employees here drinking coffee and chatting, though not many.

Aren't they afraid of being seen by the boss or their superiors?!

Hu Ya couldn't resist her curiosity, approached a lone male employee, chatted briefly, and returned with her findings.

How to put it? It wasn't as complicated as they'd imagined.

The lounge was built to be used—if left idle, it'd be a waste, so the company doesn't forbid employees from resting here.

Of course, anyone who dares to hang out here usually has some justification or leverage.

For example, the male employee just now—he's from the Distribution Department; he came here specifically to call an important client, and just happened to grab a drink and snack. No one would say anything.

Besides, anyone with half a brain wouldn't linger here long, openly slacking off in broad daylight.

Usually, they'd stay ten minutes, at most half an hour—get some fresh air, relax a bit, then return to work.

"Yi'an's company atmosphere is pretty good."

Liu Yun felt a faint sigh; though not exactly open or free, the overall atmosphere was relatively relaxed, at least far better than Huayi.

Over there, whether work environment or mood, was far more tense and oppressive than here at Yi'an.

Especially the artist management department, rife with competition; certain teams were outright hostile toward each other, even setting traps and causing trouble.

For instance, Team One, led by Li Bingbing and Li Xue, had a poor relationship with Zhou Young Master's team.

Huo Siyan fared even worse—Team One rejected her, and though she'd been getting by in Team Two, things fell apart.

Team Two, overcrowded, descended into internal chaos, eventually splitting into two factions with separate managers, and some artists defected to other teams.

Due to her "undercover status," Huo Siyan was sensitive; after Team Two's reorganization, neither of the new managers wanted to take on this hot potato, passing her back and forth until she was finally assigned to Team Four, newly formed and led by Huang Xiaoming.

Huo Siyan had previously complained that if not for the breach penalty, she'd have gone solo long ago.

Of course, she wanted to join Yi'an far more—but the possibility was extremely low, or rather, she dared not.

She had utterly alienated Fan Xiaopang and Wang Ou.

These two had been at Yi'an so long, with connections everywhere; they had countless ways to sabotage her, even Qin Lan's intervention couldn't help.

As for the other Teddy Sisters, either they were incompetent or too timid, none suitable for joining Yi'an.

This was one of Qin Lan's quiet grievances—she had always wanted to place a friendly artist at Yi'an.

Yi'an and Yan Li prioritized their own artists; Qin Lan routinely slipped resources to the Teddy Sisters, but had to pick up Fan and Wang's leftovers, burdened by countless concerns.

But if Qin Lan promoted a Yi'an artist, she wouldn't face so much hesitation or worry.

Aligning with the company's and Yan Li's interests, her influence, her connections at Yi'an, and its resources could be maximized.

But Qin Lan had never found a suitable candidate, so she simply stopped looking herself.

After all, Yi'an would definitely sign new talent; she could observe Yi'an's newcomers, and if she spotted a promising one, she'd reach out.

She saved herself trouble, and it was beneficial for both the newcomer and the company—mutual cooperation, mutual gain.

As she pondered this, she suddenly spotted an acquaintance passing by and couldn't help waving.

"Brother Wang."

Wang Decai, head of Yi'an's film and television department, saw Qin Lan and beamed with a wide smile on his chubby face.

"What brings you here today?"

"Your company moved to a new place, so I came to take a look."

Huo Siyan and the others all stood up and respectfully greeted Wang Decai.

"Producer Wang."

"Director Wang."

In life, choices and luck are truly crucial.

Wang Decai had once been merely a second unit director on "Heroes of Sui and Tang," though he'd been around long enough to have some connections, he was never anyone significant.

Then he met Yan Li, joined Yi'an, and as Yan Li and Yi'an rose, so did he.

A few years ago, many of Yi'an's projects were produced by Wang Decai.

After becoming head of Yi'an's film and television department, he no longer directly managed many projects, but he held some influence over every film and TV project Yi'an produced or participated in.

Just as Xiao Guan held considerable status in the industry due to the strength of the distribution department, Wang Decai, backed by Yi'an, was regarded by many as a big shot.

Even Qin Lan's arrangements for the Teddy Sisters had once gone through Wang Decai.

When Qin Lan first met Yan Li in Hengdian, she had also seen Wang Decai—but back then, it was only a passing acquaintance; they grew familiar later.

Wang Decai even joked he was the matchmaker between Yan Li and Qin Lan; whenever Qin Lan asked him for help, he never refused what he could.

But this guy was a seasoned veteran.

He helped Qin Lan, he helped Dong Xuan and Fan Xiaopang, and even when Wang Ou asked him, he extended a hand.

Because of his seniority, his pivotal position, and his agreeable nature, even though everyone knew he played both sides, no one dared easily offend him.

After exchanging a few pleasantries, Qin Lan curiously eyed a young girl trailing behind Wang Decai.

"Who is this?"

"Yang Mi."

Wang Decai raised an eyebrow, then smiled warmly: "She played Guo Xiang in 'The Return of the Condor Heroes.' Our company has a drama we think suits her—I'm bringing her in to sign a contract."

Yang Mi, who had been silent until now, stepped forward to greet them: "Teacher Qin, Teacher Huo…"

"Guo Xiang."

Qin Lan suddenly understood—no wonder she looked familiar. Studying the youthful, slightly unpolished Yang Mi, Qin Lan grew thoughtful.

A newcomer, never previously collaborated with Yi'an—could Yi'an be planning to sign her?

Qin Lan filed this away in her mind, and when Yan Li finished his meal, she specifically asked him about it.

Upon hearing this, Yan Li's expression turned peculiar.

He'd initially thought Qin Lan was trying to sabotage Dong Xuan's plans, but then realized she was simply inquiring about Yang Mi.

Hmm, the Teddy Sisters strut around like they know everything, yet didn't even know Yang Mi was from the rival camp?

Still, Yan Li thought carefully, and found it understandable.

The fact that Yang Mi was Dong Xuan's disciple was known only within Beijing Film Academy—even among the 2005 acting class.

And their master-disciple bond had soured quickly, only recently mended.

On the surface, Dong Xuan and Yang Mi had almost no contact beyond their Beijing Film Academy teacher-student link; Yang Mi had never acted in any Yi'an production. Qin Lan had no intelligence network and had never met her before—how could she know Yang Mi was Dong Xuan's person?

Yan Li, not wanting trouble, didn't mention Yang Mi's connection to Dong Xuan, but confirmed Yi'an was considering signing Yang Mi.

Yi'an would definitely sign new talent—this was beyond doubt.

Fan Xiaopang and Wang Ou? They were merely ignored by Yan Li, and Yi'an was deliberately concentrating resources on boosting its top-tier artists first.

Fan Xiaopang is now at his peak, Wang Ou's career is also going well—it's time to replenish the next tier.

Yang Mi, classically trained, has a good appearance, decent acting ability, is at a suitable age gap from Fan and Wang, and possesses both ambition and drive.

I've said before that Yan Li doesn't want naive, sweet girls when hiring—he prefers ambitious ones; when he signed Fan Xiaopang and Wang Ou, similar factors were at play.

In addition, Yang Mi was listed among the Four Little Flowers of a certain generation in the intelligence Yan Li received before.

This means that in the future, she also rose to prominence—so when buying lottery tickets, you naturally pick the ones with higher odds of winning.

As for the concerns Dong Xuan had about the Rongxinda contract and pressure from Fan and Wang, Yan Li didn't consider them an issue.

The former, Yan Li could easily handle.

The latter, Yan Li could tolerate their capriciousness for a while, but if they harmed the company's interests, that would be a different matter.

Besides, Wang Ou is one thing—Yan Li just needs to give her a warning and she'll settle down; as for Fan Xiaopang, Yan Li truly doesn't think she'd care much about some yellow-haired girl.

Unless Yang Mi directly challenges Fan Xiaopang, the top diva, and shows disrespect—then she deserves to be punished for not knowing the rules.

But one thing Yan Li and Dong Xuan agree on: signing Yang Mi isn't urgent.

Dong Xuan wants Yang Mi to gain more momentum and confidence; Yan Li wants to assess Yang Mi's potential and overall value.

Today's Yi'an isn't short of artists eager to join—if Yan Li wished, he could assemble a talent roster numbering in the hundreds in minutes.

But such artists offer poor value-for-money—he prefers those with high potential, one capable of standing in for ten or even a hundred others.

If Yang Mi demonstrates potential and value, Yi'an will sign her, pour resources into promoting her; if her potential is insufficient, signing or not doesn't matter much.

Not just Yang Mi—all the new talents Yi'an's artist agency has eyed are handled this way.

But Yang Mi has Dong Xuan's recommendation, plus strong future intelligence and favorable conditions, making her a key subject under observation, with significantly greater attention given.

Yan Li isn't afraid Yang Mi will take Yi'an's resources, get her career started, then back out.

If she dares to play him, he'll help her switch careers.

Not to mention Yan Li's status and resources in the industry—just having the intelligence system alone makes it hard to build a person up, but easy to destroy one.

Yet Yan Li misjudged one thing—he assumed Qin Lan was merely curious about Yang Mi and didn't want to meddle, unaware she had other intentions.

After finishing the meal, Yan Li returned to work; Qin Lan and the others planned to leave.

But once they got in the car, Qin Lan watched Yan Li's vehicle drive away, and paused thoughtfully.

"I have something else to do—you all go ahead."

Huosiyen and the others assumed Qin Lan had a date with Yan Li; though they found it ridiculous that the couple was still so clingy after all these years, they didn't dare be the third wheel, laughed and joked a bit, then dispersed.

Qin Lan made a phone call, confirmed Yang Mi was still at the company, drove back herself to the vicinity of Yi'an's headquarters, waited, and used her phone's internet to briefly check Yang Mi's file.

Born in 1986, graduated from Beijing Film Academy, under Rongxinda, starred in "The Legend of the Condor Heroes" and "Wang Zhaojun."

Qin Lan paid special attention to "Wang Zhaojun"—the lead female role in a CCTV historical drama; no wonder Yan Li took notice.

A promising talent!

Her age is perfect—if brought into the Teddy Sisters, she'd become the youngest member without affecting anyone else's ranking.

Hmm, thinking too far ahead.

Qin Lan shook her head—it's still too early to tell; better to make contact first.