Chapter 365: Business Agency Company, Trainee, This Is Your Yan Shu

After thinking it over, Yan Li temporarily didn't mention equity investment, and as for cooperation, there was no need to elaborate.

Not to mention the friendship between everyone, even Li Bingbing herself is currently a huge star who can bring all kinds of revenue to Yi'an.

If Li Bingbing's company takes off, or if development and circumstances require a deeper bond between both sides, then binding together won't be too late.

At worst, Yi'an pays a bit more or Li Bingbing and her sister ask for less—so long as the cooperation goes smoothly, everything can be recouped later.

As for whether Li Bingbing might seek other partners because of this… as long as the two sisters haven't lost their minds, they won't do anything so foolish.

After finishing the meal, Yan Li wiped his mouth, sat back on the sofa like a boss, while Li Bingbing and her sister cleaned up the dishes and then discussed ideas and direction for the new company.

Li Xue, as the actual manager of the company, set the tone: "At the beginning, we'll definitely center everything around my sister."

Li Bingbing herself is the sisters' biggest asset; early operations must follow her lead, similar to a larger-scale artist studio.

But Li Xue also understood that for the company to grow, it couldn't rely solely on Li Bingbing—it needed to develop related subsidiary businesses.

Yan Li's mind stirred: "Are you thinking of investing in film and television?"

The Li sisters exchanged glances, then shook their heads. Li Bingbing said: "This industry is too deep. We're small players and dare not get involved lightly."

Yan Li praised: "Smart."

Many stars start businesses, especially those who've worked in film and television, and their first instinct is to invest in movies and TV dramas.

This is an extremely unwise choice: having acted in a drama doesn't mean you can successfully run one—they're completely different things.

Especially in this era, stars have little influence; they're constrained at every turn by reliance on crews, channels, distribution, and other resources.

Many stars dive in full of confidence, but few even manage to make a small profit, let alone break through.

The most well-known example on the mainland is Li Yapeng—he previously started a film company and lost money like a fool.

Even earlier Hong Kong stars need no further mention.

Li Tianwang was once wildly popular, went out on his own as a boss, nearly went bankrupt, and since then has become extremely cautious about investments, sticking mostly to low-budget or personal projects, with the bulk of his income still coming from acting and concerts.

So at this stage, film and television investment without sufficient resources and connections, believing a star's halo alone can dominate the market, is a sure path to ruin—you won't even know how you died.

Li Bingbing and her sister find it hard to earn money, and Yan Li hopes they'll be cautious.

If there's no good project, don't rashly invest; Yi'an can help them, but won't guarantee their losses.

Fortunately, the Li sisters understand their limits, adopt a conservative strategy, which stems from their family background, personality, and experiences.

They grew up in poor conditions, endured hardship from childhood; when they had nothing, they might gamble, but now that they have assets, they won't risk it all.

Li Bingbing is resilient, Li Xue is shrewd and thorough; the sisters overcame countless hardships to gradually elevate Li Bingbing, whose talent was relatively average, to where she is today—because they knew how hard the journey was, they value everything more.

In comparison, Fan Xiaopang, the other half of the "Two Bings," has a much more aggressive personality and investment strategy.

She favors bold moves, is proactive and fearless; if she started her own business, she'd invest in projects one hundred percent first—and as the lead investor.

From a business perspective, Fan Xiaopang's approach is more likely to scale up, but also more likely to crash.

Li Bingbing and her sister seek stability; their scale may be small and profits modest, but risks are lower, making their path relatively longer-lasting and safer.

Now that Fan Xiaopang doesn't need to consider starting her own business and has Yan Li holding her back, she's much more stable.

Meanwhile, Li Bingbing and her sister could afford to take a bit more risk.

"Caution is good, but in business, being too cautious sometimes means losing opportunities."

Yan Li, after hearing Li Xue's ideas, couldn't help offering advice.

According to Li Xue's plan, their new company, besides handling Li Bingbing's agency business, could also take on minor tasks related to film projects.

A film has many stages; even giants like Yi'an don't handle everything—they outsource certain tasks or give them to related companies.

Li Xue felt that, having served as Li Bingbing's agent all along, she had some ability and connections in publicity and brand outreach.

So the new company could take on film promotion, marketing, brand placements, or similar work—earning money while building connections and experience.

The thinking was correct, the method was sound, but it was perhaps too conservative.

If the sisters were going it alone, this entry point made sense—but with Yan Li here, they were being overly cautious.

The next few years are precisely the high-growth period for the entertainment industry; if the Li sisters play small and miss the industry's momentum and Li Bingbing's golden era, they'll have no way to cry with regret.

"How much money can you make from film marketing and brand outreach? Instead of struggling with that, start with artist agency right away."

"Your sister's this popular—pick two promising newcomers and push them hard, you can definitely launch at least one second-tier star."

"Even if promising newcomers are hard to find, you can directly collaborate with established artists. You understand Yi'an's split-contract model, right? Your and your sister's connections mean nothing to Yi'an, but to ordinary stars, they're still very valuable."

Li Xue pondered: "You mean, imitate Hua Jie?"

"Hua Jie's approach wasn't wrong, but her mindset is outdated."

Yan Li had no intention of hiding anything from the Li sisters: "What era are we in now? The internet age. The economy has risen, entertainment has flourished, and a star's high influence brings greater returns. Holding tightly to film and television has no future—turning a star's influence into profit through business and other channels is the new way."

"Do you know how much advertising revenue Weibo has now? As of this year, it's already surpassed 190 million RMB—this is even after Weibo has consciously restrained ad placement to develop its user ecosystem."

"Next year, with further development of mobile platforms, Weibo will test commercialization, and advertising revenue is projected to reach 350 to 500 million RMB."

"A significant portion of this advertising and brand collaboration involves stars; Yi'an and artists closely tied to Weibo have already started drinking the first soup."

"You might not grasp this, so let me be clearer: this year, Bingbing—not your sister—Fan Bingbing's total annual advertising and business revenue was about 40 million."

"Note, not total revenue of 40 million—this is her personal income, and our company took a share."

After Fan Xiaopang established her studio, the profit split with the company was 30-70, along with original shares, project dividends, and priority access to resources.

That means, including Yi'an's 30%, Fan Xiaopang's total annual advertising and business income approaches 60 million.

This is only advertising and business income—film and project dividends are separate.

Li Bingbing and Li Xue exchanged glances, both wincing.

They were all part of the "Four Dan and Two Bing" group, yet Li Bingbing's advertising and business revenue was less than half of Fan Xiaopang's—precisely, just a bit over one-third.

But Li Xue now understood Yan Li's meaning.

Their new company would enter artist agency, and while other companies and agents hadn't changed their mindset, they'd focus squarely on artist business and advertising resources.

Building on Li Bingbing's influence and connections, combined with Yan Li's partial resources and the Weibo platform, they'd vigorously construct a network around star business, accumulating first-mover advantage.

Thus, they could advance by exchanging for film resources and continuously creating stars, or retreat by collaborating with established artists, forming a unique edge and securing their footing in the industry.

Whether in terms of returns or prospects, it's far broader than the originally planned movie promotion and brand negotiations.

It also offers greater independence—you don't have to kowtow to those film giants, and you can even leverage related resources to negotiate with them.

But similarly, the competitive pressure is greater, and while you don't have to bow to film giants, you now have to bow to internet giants.

After all, advertising and commercial deals all require the internet as a dissemination medium, and many operations are impossible without Weibo as the key platform.

Li Bingbing reacted quickly: "So what you're saying is, we've switched from relying on Yi'an for our livelihood to relying on Weibo."

Yan Li calmly sipped his hot water: "Is there a difference?"

The Li sisters exchanged glances and smiled—Weibo and Yi'an both belonged to Yan Li; whether they ate at one or the other, they were still eating at Yan Li's table, no difference at all.

Even focusing on commercial ventures doesn't mean abandoning film development—it's like having two pots to scoop food from, with more benefits.

Li Xue continued mentally calculating, but Li Bingbing spotted a key point.

"You're pushing us into commercial work—are you trying to get us away from Fan?"

Yi'an is Fan Xiaopang's territory; since Li Bingbing relied on Yi'an for her livelihood, there were bound to be some friction and clashes—but Weibo is different, Fan Xiaopang's hand doesn't reach that far.

"You're judging a gentleman by the standards of a petty man."

Yan Li scoffed—he'd offered good advice, and Li Bingbing twisted it into some jealous rivalry.

Even if he had thought that way, wasn't this arrangement still for Li Bingbing and her sister's own good?

Li Bingbing realized he had a point—even if Yan Li favored them, he'd still offered advice and promised Weibo's support; she was being unreasonable to dwell on Fan Xiaopang.

While her sister wasn't looking, she leaned close to Yan Li's ear and whispered a few words.

Yan Li raised an eyebrow slightly, held up two fingers—Li Bingbing glared at him, but nodded.

Li Xue wasn't as flighty as her sister; after considering it thoroughly, she felt this had great potential and began asking Yan Li for related knowledge.

Yan Li answered for a while, then, seeing she wouldn't stop, said: "I don't know all the specific operations myself—I'll introduce you to Yi'an's advertising director and the relevant Weibo personnel; talk with them, and you'll pick up the ins and outs."

Li Xue was still reluctant, but Yan Li had already yawned; he grabbed Li Bingbing and headed upstairs.

"Go to bed early. Good night."

Li Bingbing was caught off guard—she'd thought they'd at least pretend to be discreet, but this bastard didn't even bother acting—he could only awkwardly say:

"I was just talking to Yan Li about some private matters."

Li Xue: "..."

You two have been talking about too many private things behind my back!

Upstairs, Li Bingbing complained to Yan Li: "Didn't we agree? I was supposed to distract her—why are you rushing?"

"We all know what's going on—why drag out this pointless charade? If you two dawdle any longer, it'll be morning."

Yan Li sprawled lazily on the bed and patted the mattress: "Hurry up—it's time for you to keep your promise."

Li Bingbing rolled her eyes, unbuttoned her shirt, and stepped over.

The next day, thunder roared, rain poured down in torrents.

Yan Li looked at the weather, called the driver, and said he wouldn't be coming in this morning—wait until the rain stopped.

Then he went downstairs to the living room for some light stretching exercises, and suggested to Li Xue, who had woken up at the noise:

"Your house is pretty big—you should buy a treadmill or something, exercise regularly, and I can use it too when I come over."

Li Xue snorted: "When winter comes, my parents will move in—then you'll dare to come over?"

"I won't."

Yan Li said bluntly, earning a glare from Li Xue; just as she turned to go upstairs, he called out to her.

"Your sister hasn't woken up yet—she was exhausted last night, let her sleep longer."

Li Xue glared at him: "Can't you be a little gentler?"

She'd caught him several times—each time her sister looked like she'd been through hell; at first, she even thought she was being abused.

Yan Li felt wronged: "It's not my fault—really... never mind, you don't believe me? Ask your sister—if I were mistreating her, would she trust me like this?"

"..."

Li Xue had no reply—she'd already asked, otherwise, seeing her sister's state, she'd have already fought Yan Li to the death.

But she was still upset, couldn't take it out on her sister, so Yan Li bore the brunt of her misplaced anger.

Yan Li didn't mind—Li Xue was practically his junior sister-in-law; as the brother-in-law, he should be magnanimous.

He continued exercising while chatting with Li Xue: "How's your boyfriend doing?"

"It's over."

"I mean the new one—the one in publishing."

"That's over too."

Yan Li: "..."

Since Li Xue gave up on Yan Li, Li Bingbing had been anxious to marry her sister off—after all, she was already over thirty.

Yet, aside from the ones she'd met through introductions, Yan Li knew of two boyfriends already—and now she was still single.

"Two middle-aged singles—I'm worried for your parents."

Yan Li sighed. Li Xue gave him a scornful look—yesterday they'd slept together, today he'd put his pants back on and declared her sister single.

"Don't look at me like that—your sister herself said we're just friends."

Among the many women connected to Yan Li, two claimed they were only his sex partners: one was Li Xiaolu, the other was Li Bingbing.

Li Bingbing not only arranged dates for her sister, but didn't reject introductions for herself either—though she hadn't liked any of them.

Even Li Bingbing herself blamed Yan Li for ruining her—his influence had raised her standards too high, and now Li Xue couldn't find anyone, partly because of him.

Li Bingbing was easy—he could spare time to satisfy her emotional and physical needs; Li Xue had to rely on herself.

After teasing her a bit, Yan Li saw the rain hadn't stopped, took a shower, and prepared to eat.

The fridge has food—I boiled some frozen dumplings and made soy milk. Li Xue went upstairs to call her sister, but Li Bingbing still wouldn't get up, so they started eating without her.

After seeing Li Bingbing's condition, Li Xue came downstairs with even heavier resentment; even Yan Li dared not provoke her.

After dinner, Yan Li, who hadn't brought his laptop, turned on the TV. One channel was broadcasting an entertainment news program.

【King Liu announces romance, rumors surface of a teenage daughter】

【Michael Jackson's cause of death remains mysterious, suspected homicide】

【Singer Chen Chusheng sues Tian Yu for contract termination, will pay former employer 6.5 million】

【……】

Yan Li watched the news while cross-referencing Weibo's trending topics, unable to help shaking his head.

No wonder TV news is constantly criticized—it's just too slow.

The news about King Liu's daughter was already debunked on Weibo's trending list two days ago; the other two stories had been circulating on Weibo since yesterday, with more comprehensive information from all sides, even including Chen Chusheng's own official statement.

Compared to this, these TV news reports aren't just behind Weibo—they're far behind portals like Sina and Sohu.

One of the most important elements of news is immediacy—that is, the "new" in news. When this is completely shattered by the internet, control of discourse begins to shift.

While he was enjoying the news, he suddenly felt a weight on his shoulder—he realized Li Xue had leaned against him without him noticing.

"Little sister-in-law, don't mess around—your sister would eat me alive if she saw."

The more he said that, the more Li Xue doubled down—she shifted from leaning to hugging, gripping his arm tightly.

"She'll eat you, not me."

"Alright, you're really bold."

Yan Li grumbled, hesitating whether to dodge away, when Li Xue said: "I'm cold—I'll just hold on for a bit. Even if my sister sees, it's fine. She can be heartless, but can't I lean on someone?"

No wonder Li Bingbing went to such lengths to avoid Li Xue—this sister, if seen, would throw her psyche out of balance and things could easily go wrong.

Yan Li was a soft-hearted person; seeing Li Xue's emotions were clearly unstable, he offered comfort.

Fortunately, Li Xue, due to various considerations, didn't go too far. After a while, she returned to her room, and didn't show herself again until the rain stopped and Yan Li left.

After Yan Li left, Li Xue silently returned to her room. Li Bingbing hesitated, then followed her in.

"Xue'er, are you okay?"

"I'm fine."

Li Bingbing sighed helplessly, her eyes red. How could she be fine? She sat on the bed and hugged her.

"If you really can't accept it, I'll break up with him."

Yan Li had a place in Li Bingbing's heart, but he was nowhere near as important as her own blood sister, whom she'd watched grow up.

To resolve the rift between the two sisters, she was willing to sacrifice everything—to pull out this thorn.

"No need."

Li Xue stood up, wiped her eyes, and spoke with surprising calm: "We can't break up—not for now. In the early stages of our startup, we need Yan Li. Purely business ties aren't enough. Your relationship with him brings huge advantages."

"Then you—"

Li Bingbing hesitated. Li Xue smiled: "I'm really fine. I'm just having a momentary emotional stumble—I'll get over it."

"It's my fault, Xue."

Li Bingbing hugged her sister guiltily. Li Xue comforted her: "We're sisters—we're one. It's just some guy. Not a big deal."

After sharing some heartfelt words, Li Bingbing left the room, her head aching.

She could tell Li Xue still thought about Yan Li—almost like a mental obsession.

Part of it was her own fault. If they'd simply been incompatible, fine. Li Xue wasn't the type to brood—but with her own sister betraying her, and Yan Li constantly showing off their closeness, even someone without a heart demon would've grown one.

So now things were stuck.

Break up? She couldn't bring herself to do it—and as Li Xue said, the new company couldn't survive without Yan Li.

But if they didn't break up, Li Bingbing feared Li Xue would dig deeper into her obsession and end up doing something unthinkable.

Maybe try a sneaky trick?

————

Yan Li didn't know Li Bingbing's thoughts. With the rain falling, he didn't feel like going to work, so he invited a few friends out to play.

A certain sports club

Yan Li held his badminton racket, looking at the panting Liu from JD, and couldn't help mocking him.

"Old Liu, your stamina's terrible. At thirty-something, you're already this weak?"

Boss Liu retorted: "I stayed up too late last night for business dinners—I'm not feeling well."

"Tsk."

Yan Li smirked and stopped teasing him, switching to another friend to start playing.

Badminton was a sport Yan Li had recently taken up—it had simple rules, easy-to-find courts, and let him leverage his strengths: good stamina, great strength, and quick reflexes.