star of the peninsula

If we have to say it, we can also say that Chen Chen took the initiative to set a test for Tian Xiaojuan, and this test is related to her growth.

Cube Entertainment has become a younger brother of C headquarters and the person in charge has completely become Boss Hong. The environment that (G)I-DLE is in is completely different from "before".

In other words, Tian Xiaojuan, who seems to be omnipotent, may lose the possibility of evolution due to changes in the environment.

Chen Chen thought that it was pressure that forced her to evolve. Since there was no pressure in the current reality, he might as well create some pressure for her.

It's a bit mean, but it's really for her own good.

……

"President, you are here."

Jin Shidai had been waiting there long ago, and when he saw Chen Chen coming over, he quickly stood up and greeted him.

"Well, I told you why I asked you to come here in the message." Chen Chen raised his hand to signal him to sit down, and then solemnly put the topic on the table, "Has Integrate started preparing for the concert?"

“I think we need to wait a little longer.” Jinshidai had his own considerations. “If Integrate’s first concert is just an online concert, everyone will be disappointed.”

"But the problem now is that no one knows when the epidemic will ease to the extent that concerts can be held," Chen Chen responded.

In fact, he knew the answer to his question, but he couldn't say it.

"That's not a problem. We just need to wait until we can hold a concert." Jin Shidai still insisted on his opinion and even taught Chen Chen a lesson, "Humans are very capable of overcoming difficulties. Otherwise, they wouldn't have grown to this point."

"Tell me what you think. Maybe you and I understand it differently."

Chen Chen was not angry, he just wanted to hear the opinion of this operations master.

"If we want to talk about concerts, we must be clear about one thing: concerts are for making money. Artists, companies, and advertisers are all making money." Golden Era started with "outrageous remarks". "Don't say it's for meeting fans. There are so many ways to meet fans! Giving back to fans is even more nonsense. Otherwise, why would concert tickets be sold at higher and higher prices!"

"Do you think there is something wrong with what I said?" asked Jin Shidai.

"..."

"no problem."

Chen Chen really had no way to refute. After all, the other person did nothing wrong except that he was too straightforward.

There are still many ways to meet fans and give back to fans, even if we exclude all commercial activities. Using concerts to give back to fans is simply a formality used to cover up the ultimate goal.

Oh no, idols may have this idea, but entertainment companies definitely won’t.

Unfortunately, Chen Chen happened to be the head of the entertainment company, and he knew very well that he really had no intention of considering his fans at all.

"If it's just for the sake of making money, then there's no need for C headquarters to hold a concert for Integrate, because C headquarters doesn't lack money at all." Jin Shidai continued, "Although I can't see the company's finances, from your various actions, it seems that C headquarters definitely doesn't need to use concerts to make money."

"Then I was thinking, what is the purpose of you suddenly talking to me about the Integrate concert?"

"After thinking about it, I made a bold guess. You probably just felt that Integrate had come so far on the idol path and it was time to hold a concert."

"That's not the case. There is no rule that says idols have to hold concerts after they have come this far." Golden Era turned back, "Again, if you want to meet with fans and give back to them, there are many ways to do it. If you want to increase your influence and take the group further, a concert is worse than a carefully polished comeback."

"Let the members use the energy they put into concert preparations to make a comeback, and let the entertainment company put the resources they put into concerts into creating albums."

"I think, apart from the monetary gain, the other benefits are higher than holding a concert."

"But this set of realistic and cruel ideas can only be applied to C headquarters." Jin Shidai couldn't help but feel envious as he spoke, "Money is what all entertainment companies always pursue, but C headquarters doesn't really have to pursue this right now. It makes me so angry!"

"Well, after what you said, it seems that Integrate really doesn't need to hold a concert." Chen Chen admitted that he was convinced, and also admitted that his thinking was too simple at the time. "You are right, I really just think that it is time for Integrate to hold a concert."

“Hahaha, I finally see a bit of the confusion that a young boss should have in you!” Jin Shidai laughed loudly, “You don’t know how long I have been looking forward to this scene. Today I can finally see it and it can be said that my wish has come true!”

"Why are you looking forward to this scene?"

Chen Chen was a little curious.

"Because this picture can prove that I haven't wasted my time in vain. At least the experience I have accumulated is still useful." Jin Shidai sighed and asked, "Are you still planning to hold a concert now?"

"I don't want to do anything that only brings financial gain." Chen Chen shook his head. "Like you said, it's better to spend time planning a perfect comeback. Time is far more valuable than money."

"That makes a lot of sense, and it's really enviable." Jin Shidai had nothing to say, but just gave Chen Chen a look that indicated he wanted to leave, "Summon me whenever you need me. Starship is always ready to contribute to Integrate's return plan."

"Okay, there will be such an opportunity." Chen Chen waved his hand to agree to his departure. "Next year is a very important year for Integrate. The starship needs to prepare for at least two returns."

"Wait a minute." Jin Shidai sat back suddenly. "I can understand two returns, which is a normal frequency, but where does the idea that next year is an important year come from?"

“It’s okay to say that the second year after debut is a very important year, right?” Chen Chen spread his hands, “The explosive growth period of idol groups is basically in this year.”

"I thought you had some special plans." Jin Shidai was a little disappointed.

"I do have some special plans." Chen Chen said mysteriously, "Next year, the competition among the new generation of girl groups will be very fierce. I plan to let Integrate run over them all the way to create a very shocking scene for everyone."

"The problem is that Integrate is a gap among the new generation of girl groups right now?" Jin Shidai asked curiously, "What will be different next year?"

"Next year, S.H.I.E.'s new girl group will debut, and Dahei's new girl group will also debut. They will definitely debut. Uh, maybe Dahei will debut." Chen Chen gave a thumbs up in advance. "Anyway, the scene of Integrate crushing Dahei and S.H.I.E.'s new girl group will definitely be exciting and will be remembered by everyone for years."

"Why do you have to run others over?" Jin Shidai was a little confused.

Chen Chen's answer sounded a little scary upon closer inspection.

"It's fun, isn't it?"

“Of course, you can do whatever you want.” Jin Shidai smiled bitterly, “It’s just that I’m suddenly glad that Starship chose a boy band instead of a girl band.”

"How is CRAVITY's preparation for debut going?" Chen Chen changed the subject and asked about the most critical thing about Starship.

"The preparations are perfect, a perfection I never dared to imagine before." Jin Shidai hinted, "But there are still imperfections under this perfection, that is, the music we prepared may ruin these perfections." "It doesn't matter if the work is not perfect. The era of relying solely on good works to gain popularity is long gone." Chen Chen pretended not to understand, "Nowadays, groups with hot topics are more popular. As long as the work is not bad, it will become a huge plus point if it reaches the level of excellence."

"This is indeed the current situation, but let's work hard on the right path first." Jinshidai suddenly kicked a ball over, "The specific debut date of CRAVITY has not been decided yet. We were planning to discuss it in a meeting today, but since you mentioned them, how about setting a date at the same time?"

"You guys go back to the meeting. I'm not good at this." Chen Chen refused directly. "It's better for you to roll the dice and decide the date than for me to set it."

"Okay, I'll roll the dice to decide." Jin Shidai made a joke, and when he saw that Chen Chen didn't laugh, he changed his expression to a more serious one and brought up a more serious topic, "What do you think of the girl group that debuted recently and the one that's about to debut?"

"You mean STAYC and Aespa?"

When Chen Chen heard the latter name, he couldn't help but smacked his lips, and his expression became subtle.

“Yes,” Jin Shidai said, “My point is that STAYC is a very traditional girl group, while Aespa is a weird monster with a strange shape.”

"You mean deformed?" Chen Chen snorted coldly, "It is indeed deformed. The left half of the body is as strong as the Hulk, but the right half is just normal. It doesn't look right no matter how you look at it."

This is about the huge disparity in popularity within the Aespa team.

Gao En and Lami, two members who are already extremely popular, have received more resources. The popularity within Aespa can no longer be described as unbalanced, they are basically two different levels!
"But at least they had accumulated a lot of popularity before their debut," Jinshidai laughed frivolously. "If the other two members become popular after their debut, then the other side of their body will be normal."

"The chance of this happening is close to zero, but it's at least one percent." Chen Chen glanced at him, "But Aespa is going to debut in the next two days anyway, so we'll just have to see how things develop."

"Dingling bell~"

Before Jin Shidai could answer, the phone on Chen Chen's desk rang first.

"Okay, I got it." Chen Chen hung up the phone and said to Golden Era, "The Stupid Hat Company is here to pay the protection fee."

“It’s actually quite late.”

……

After bidding farewell to Golden Era and welcoming Kwon Bo-Ah, the gift they received was the KEYEAST shares that SMART Entertainment should have redeemed long ago.

"It took some time to decide who would hand over the shares, so I'm sorry it's a little later than agreed."

This is the explanation given by Quan Baoer.

It was so fake, but Chen Chen chose to give it some face and believe it.

"So, as long as I sign this contract, I can get KEYEAST's shares and customization privileges?"

Chen Chen replied, but he pressed the button to call the assistant over.

"Let our professionals take a look."

Chen Chen stared at Zhiyan and greeted Baoer, then handed the contract to her.

"Then." Chen Chen turned his gaze back to Baoer, "What does Director Baoer want to tell me?"

"Begging for peace, no, begging for mercy." BoA replied: "Our new girl group is about to debut, I hope you can show some mercy."

"The request is not strange." Chen Chen hesitated for a moment, and finally asked, "But why did you come?"

If we were to ask who in SM Entertainment is the most staunch supporter of Lee Soo Man, BoA would undoubtedly be at the front of the list.

aespa is the first work of CEO Lee Sung-soo, who has obtained the authority to manage artists. It is also a work that must be successful, and it is appropriate that someone from his side should come.

Chen Chen didn't believe that this was Lee Soo Man's care for his nephew. How could there be such a touching uncle-nephew relationship in SMART?

"It's just because I'm also a director of SMART." Baoer knew what Chen Chen was thinking and went straight to the point. "Directors have to do things. Things of this level should of course be given to directors, and the person chosen happens to be me."

"I understand." Chen Chen relaxed. "Isn't it a bit too much to ask me to show mercy just by talking?"

"Aren't there still shares of KEYEAST?" Baoer tapped the desktop, pointing to the things that were just placed there.

"That originally belonged to me." Chen Chen narrowed his eyes slightly. "You are using my things to ask me to do something. Are you sure you didn't mean to provoke me on purpose? Or did you come here to cause trouble for the representative director?"

"I just wanted to try my luck. Stupid Company has been in a tight spot lately, so of course I don't want to give it to you if I can." Baoer sighed heavily, "I always knew I couldn't fool you, so I just wanted to try my best."

"Okay, let's start the conversation again." Baoer straightened her manners and stated the conditions given by Shamao, "Shamao, hand over all the marketing accounts supported by the Chinese market in exchange for C headquarters stopping targeting South Korea."

"Give up the Chinese market for the time being and focus on local business. What a brilliant decision." Chen Chen nodded without hesitation. "Deal!"

"If C headquarters wants to find its own shark, our arrangement in the Chinese market... Hey~ it's a deal?" Baoer was shocked and surprised. "Shamao will hand over the information to C headquarters as soon as possible!"

"that is it."

Chen Chen stretched out his hand and shook her hand.

When Jiyeon sent back the KEYEAST contract, the atmosphere between Chen Chen and Baoer had become as harmonious as chatting at home.

After signing a contract and getting what he deserved, Chen Chen smiled and sent Baoer out of C headquarters.

To be honest, all of Shamao's heavyweight marketing accounts in China have been caught and targeted by C headquarters. Getting the entire list is just like catching the small shrimps that slipped through the net. In addition, it is not particularly beneficial to clean out all of Shamao's marketing accounts in China.

But Chen Chen didn't know why he wanted to do this so much that he was excited when he heard the condition.

"What is this? With great power comes great responsibility?"

"Brother, are you starting to police the Korean entertainment industry? Or are China and South Korea jointly in charge?"

...(End of chapter)