At seven in the evening, at the Nine Stars Grand Hotel in Modu. In the luxurious private room A88, Song Qianqian, Manager Wang from Tianlan Entertainment Company, and several other agents and assistants were chatting and waiting.
Originally, they had planned to book a table at the Hill Grand Hotel. However, ever since Bai Ye made an appearance there and performed a magic trick, the Hill Grand Hotel had become incredibly popular. The sheer number of people made it inconvenient for public figures like them to gather.
At the hotel entrance, Bai Ye walked in, dressed in casual clothes and wearing a mask.
“Welcome!”
“Sir, do you have a reservation?”
The greeter’s fake smile turned brilliant as she looked at the dashing and handsome Bai Ye.
“I’m looking for a friend, A88.”
“Room A88 is a deluxe suite on the 18th floor. Please follow me.”
“Rich and handsome??”
The greeter’s eyes lit up, a hint of allure in her gaze as she led Bai Ye to the elevators.
“Is there anything else you require, honored guest?”
Bending in a bow, Tu Baixuezi peeked from the V-neck opening, her ample bosom almost spilling out.
Bai Ye glanced at her sideways as the elevator doors slowly closed.
The 18th floor, Room A88.
He raised his hand and knocked.
“Knock, knock.”
“Coming!”
The group, who had been chatting and laughing relaxedly moments before, couldn’t help but feel a slight tension.
Manager Wang stood up and went to the door, while Song Qianqian and the others quickly rose as well.
“Ye??”
Seeing the young man in a mask at the door, Manager Wang sized him up. His build and demeanor perfectly matched.
“You’re here. Please, come in!”
Bai Ye nodded slightly, removed his mask, and scanned the room. Four women and one man, all their eyes fixed on him. The demure Song Qianqian was wearing a loose, oversized blue t-shirt with shorts, revealing her round, fair, and delicate long legs.
Beside her, the seat of honor was clearly vacant, reserved for Bai Ye.
Bai Ye followed Manager Wang to the table and, without any pretense, sat in the seat of honor at Manager Wang’s invitation.
Manager Wang picked up the private room’s dedicated phone.
The group, despite it being Tianlan Entertainment Company’s event, felt a growing sense of nervousness with Bai Ye’s arrival.
“Ye, Brother Ye, I’m Song Qianqian.”
Song Qianqian, who casually called him “Brother Ye” online, felt a surge of nervousness seeing Bai Ye sitting so close. She couldn’t even utter the word “Brother” at the end.
“Magic streamer, Ye.”
Bai Ye looked at Song Qianqian. His sunny smile made him seem quite approachable, and the tension in Song Qianqian and the others’ hearts eased a little.
“Haha, Ye, we’re all quite familiar with each other, so let’s dispense with the formalities, shall we?”
Manager Wang said with a smile, introducing some of his assistants and agents to Bai Ye.
Meanwhile, the servers began bringing out various dishes, along with several bottles of high-end red wine. However, due to driving, Bai Ye wasn’t interested.
After a brief round of introductions, everyone gradually relaxed. After some casual conversation over dinner, they moved on to the main topic.
“The concert tomorrow night will last about two hours.”
The two parties negotiated. Bai Ye would open the show with a magic performance to build excitement, lasting 40 minutes to an hour. Song Qianqian would then perform for an hour. Concurrently, the company had prepared a new song for her, which would be released at this time.
For the live broadcast, Bai Ye’s and Song Qianqian’s live streams could be conducted simultaneously.
In essence, this was another transaction where Tianlan Entertainment Company leveraged Bai Ye’s popularity to promote Song Qianqian. However, this time, in addition to investing, they were also aiming to make a significant profit.
For Bai Ye, it wasn’t a bad deal either. Not only would he earn a substantial amount of money, but it also presented an opportunity to gain considerable prestige.
While he could certainly organize his own magic show, even one of unprecedented scale, if he wished, Douyin would readily collaborate with him.
However, organizing such an event would require a lot of time. Many tedious procedures would involve his own interests, and he would have to review them one by one, which would consume a great deal of energy.
It was far better to collaborate with Tianlan Entertainment Company and take advantage of their existing setup.
After all, his primary objective was prestige!
Ultimately, Tianlan Entertainment Company agreed to increase the remuneration by 5 million, offering a total of 15 million for Bai Ye’s appearance.
With the deal struck, Manager Wang laughed heartily.
“Hahaha! Ye, it’s so satisfying to cooperate with you!”
“Brother Ye is so amazing!”
Song Qianqian praised him silently, observing the entire negotiation process. On Tianlan Entertainment Company’s side, there was a whole team: finance, agents, assistants, and consultants. Bai Ye, however, was alone, yet he handled them with such ease!
With the main business concluded, Song Qianqian’s assistant subtly nudged her, her eyes signaling towards Bai Ye.
Song Qianqian shook her head sheepishly.
The assistant smiled at her dismissively, indicating their close relationship. Then, she boldly asked, “Brother Ye, can you perform a little magic?”
“Hehe, we’re your little fan girls too!”
Saying this, she tightly held Song Qianqian’s arm, causing Song Qianqian’s ears to flush with embarrassment.
Manager Wang and the others also looked on with anticipation.
Bai Ye chuckled, “Certainly.”
He then looked at Song Qianqian, “What magic would you like to see?”
The assistant, holding Song Qianqian’s arm, smirked. Song Qianqian slapped her hand away and said with a touch of girlish shyness, “I don’t know, Brother Ye, you’re great at all your magic.”
Bai Ye’s lips curved slightly.
“There’s a flower on your face!”
As he spoke, Bai Ye reached his hand toward Song Qianqian’s cheek, making a grabbing motion in the air. Before Song Qianqian or anyone else could react, he pulled his hand back and flipped it open.
Several red plum blossoms appeared.
“Wow!!”
The girls let out gasps of surprise, while Manager Wang and the other male consultant stared in disbelief.
“It’s so magical!”
“It’s actually an illusion!”
Bai Ye chuckled softly. He then closed his hand and opened it again, and the red plum blossoms vanished.
“Wow!!”
“Are you using finger cots?”
The people at the table couldn’t help but crane their necks, examining Bai Ye’s fingers closely. The bold assistant, with Bai Ye’s permission, blushed and touched his hand.
“Wow! There are no cots! There really aren’t!!!”
Everyone was dumbfounded, even rubbing their eyes.
“Could it be that we’re just seeing things?”
After a moment of slight confusion, they all understood that the flowers were real, but they had no idea what magical technique Bai Ye had used to make them disappear.
“Ye, you truly live up to being called the strongest magician!”
“Perform another one for us, telekinesis magic!”
Bai Ye picked up a cup of beverage from the table and placed his hand over it from a distance, utilizing his basic spatial abilities.
Then, under the watchful eyes of Song Qianqian and her group, he gently lifted it. The cup, filled with orange juice, slowly floated into the air, incredibly steady. The beverage inside didn’t even ripple!
“Holy crap!!”
“Brother Ye is amazing!”
The assistant girls couldn’t help but exclaim.
Song Qianqian almost couldn’t contain herself but finally covered her small mouth with her delicate hand.
“Could this cup and drink be fake?”
Manager Wang and the male consultant, having seen many magic tricks, asked.
However, as Bai Ye gently rotated the cup a few times, causing ripples in the orange juice, Manager Wang and the male consultant immediately fell silent, left gaping in astonishment.
Subsequently, Bai Ye performed several other signature magic tricks, such as creating fire with his bare hands and freezing with one hand. The group was dazzled, exclaiming repeatedly.
“Brother Ye, your magic is the most incredible!”
“Brother Ye is so handsome!!”
Various amazing little magic tricks were performed until past nine, almost ten o’clock. The food had gone cold, and only then did everyone finally take a break, having indulged their craving for magic.
“Has everyone eaten enough?”
Everyone looked at each other and nodded in agreement.
Manager Wang then said, “Ye, as per your requirements, the secret passages, hidden compartments on the stage, and the wire rigging have all been prepared.”
“Shall we head over now? To see if there’s anything that needs further improvement?”
Bai Ye nodded. Whether it needed improvement or not was secondary; he still needed to go through the motions.
The bill came to 180,000.
Leaving the grand hotel, Song Qianqian and Manager Wang, along with six others, got into a van. Bai Ye followed behind them.
Their destination was the concert venue, Modu Oriental Grand Plaza, located on the northeastern outskirts of Modu.
The entire area had been rented by Tianlan Entertainment Company. The vast plaza, measured in kilometers, was enclosed by temporary partitions and fences.
West exit.
An elderly woman was anxiously conversing with a security guard.
“Sir, my little Hei ran inside. Could you please let me go in and find it?”
“I’m sorry, Grandma! This area is cordoned off, and outsiders are not allowed in!”
Just then, Bai Ye and his group arrived.
Seeing them approach, the security guards immediately stopped them. Manager Wang presented their work IDs, and the guards promptly granted them passage.
“What’s going on here?”
Song Qianqian asked the security guard, looking at the elderly woman. The guard quickly explained the situation.
It turned out that the elderly woman was walking her dog without a leash. Her black Teddy puppy had accidentally slipped into the concert venue and hadn’t come out yet.
The concert venue was strictly off-limits to outsiders. After all, with 200,000 people entering tomorrow, any ill-intentioned individuals could cause serious trouble.
“Grandma, we’ll go in and help you look. But please be sure to use a leash in the future!”
Song Qianqian comforted her. The elderly woman expressed her gratitude and promised to always keep the dog on a leash.
Bai Ye and his group entered through the gate.
The entire plaza was vast and open, with a sunken center and rising edges.
At the center of the plaza, a massive outdoor stage had been erected. The stage was clearly visible from all sides and stood about three to four meters high.
Radiating outwards from the main stage, the entire plaza was filled with seats, divided into sections and walkways. Along the walkways, large screens were placed, creating a pattern from above that resembled a Bagua diagram.
Approaching the stage, Manager Wang gave an order, and the entire stage lit up with brilliant lights, and the sound system produced clear and pure audio.
This made Bai Ye feel a surge of excitement. It was his first public live performance, and he couldn’t help but feel a little thrilled.
“Ye, are you satisfied with the stage mechanisms, secret passages, and props?”
“Good.”
Stepping onto the stage, Bai Ye went through the motions of inspecting everything.
“Very good!”
With the stage powered down, everyone descended from it.
“That old lady seemed quite pitiful. Should we go help her find her puppy?”
As they walked across the plaza, Song Qianqian suggested. At that moment, a miserable and desperate howl suddenly echoed from a section of the plaza.
“Woof!”
A sharp cry, abruptly cut short.
Hearing the sound, everyone turned their heads in unison.