79: Haidilao

The final performance was by Lou Qingran. She and her mentor gave an equally outstanding performance; because they understood each other so well, their coordination was seamless.

Lou Qingran was also a very talented singer, and she was the type to rise to the occasion when facing strong competition. Over these four episodes, she had been in a state of constant improvement.

The two of them poured their emotions out on stage to their hearts' content.

In the end, Lou Qingran was actually only 20,000 votes behind Song Ke.

Song Ke suffered a major blow from this performance. He had always been first in every competition before, but this time, he had already lost to Lu Qingyu twice in a row.

Furthermore, with a powerful opponent like Lou Qingran, he likely would have struggled to beat her if the song he chose hadn't been inherently advantageous.

In the fourth round, Lu Qingyu once again secured first place on the points leaderboard.

After the program finished, Su Jixing gave Lu Qingyu a day off.

Since returning from French Fashion Week, Lu Qingyu had been constantly busy, getting at most four hours of rest each day. As he was still a growing child and the National College Entrance Exam was approaching, Su Jixing felt it was appropriate to give Lu Qingyu some time to relax.

However, Lu Qingyu didn't stay idle during his time off. He took the opportunity to focus on handling matters for his own company.

The powerful rise of "Qingcheng Entertainment" surprised many. In the entertainment industry, there were twelve major companies—the 'Four Bigs' and 'Eight Smalls'—that controlled eighty percent of the market share.

Chen Ting's Black Pearl Entertainment counted as one of these "Eight Smalls," but because of Chen Ting's relatively laid-back and ethical management style, Black Pearl's performance was at the bottom of the list.

Yet, in just three months, Qingcheng Entertainment had broken into the ranks of the Eight Smalls by relying on short dramas.

With funding now in place, Qingcheng Entertainment's business continued to upgrade and expand. In just three months, they went from only being able to film three-to-four-minute short dramas to producing high-quality short dramas of about ten minutes, and eventually taking on an A-grade film and television project.

Wang Ning was also becoming increasingly proficient in managing the business.

Lu Qingyu was now always followed by a crowd of fans whenever he went out. Even when fully armed with a mask and hat, he would still be recognized, so Wang Ning had to come to him instead.

Wang Ning showed the quarterly financial report to Lu Qingyu. Over one quarter, after deducting all expenses, Qingcheng Entertainment's net profit actually reached two hundred million!

When Wang Ning first calculated this figure, he was stunned. The decent companies he had worked for before were lucky to reach a net profit of one hundred million in a year, yet Qingcheng Entertainment had achieved it in a single quarter.

Just one of their hit short dramas brought in over sixty million. No wonder everyone wanted to enter the entertainment industry; this money was truly easy to earn.

Wang Ning said, "Boss, regarding this new A-grade project, here is my thinking: our company mainly focuses on short dramas, and while the revenue is excellent, other film companies still see our foundation as weak. Taking on this A-grade project is mainly to increase our company's visibility and let other firms know we actually have the strength to produce more substantial content."

Lu Qingyu looked over the proposal. The newly accepted project was a modern romance drama with a slightly melodramatic title called "Destined Lovers." it told the story of a middle-class female lead who falls in love with a poor boy, rejects the advances of a CEO, and works hard alongside the poor boy.

Wang Ning had put a lot of effort into the production team this time, hiring a director and creators who were reputable and had proven works.

Lu Qingyu understood Wang Ning's considerations. Since he had entrusted the company to him, he would naturally let him decide the business strategy.

Lu Qingyu closed the script: "I trust you. Whatever ideas you have, go ahead and do them; I will support you."

Wang Ning's eyes grew moist as he looked at Lu Qingyu. What had he done in his past life to meet such a good boss? He never used 'Pick Up Artist' tactics or pressured him, only offering support and encouragement.

Wang Ning said, "Don't worry, Boss, I won't let you down."

Wang Ning stayed with Lu Qingyu for about four hours. After he left at noon, Lu Qingyu rested for less than an hour before Qi Fei arrived in the afternoon.

One hundred mu of the land purchased last time had been reserved, and now it was time to start building a hotel.

Building a hotel was a money-burning endeavor. Fortunately, there was a lot of money from the land compensation and Qingcheng Entertainment, so Lu Qingyu first allocated some funds to Qi Fei.

Qi Fei handed the hotel construction plan to Lu Qingyu.

Lu Qingyu opened it and read silently while Qi Fei sat to the side and waited.

After finishing, Lu Qingyu said, "This plan is good, but my intention is to build two hotels—one targeting high-end clients and the other targeting ordinary business travelers."

By targeting different consumers, once the airport was built, there would certainly be more than just their hotel. Lu Qingyu's main goal was to seize the initiative.

Qi Fei couldn't help but admire Lu Qingyu's idea. The main thing was that Lu Qingyu had money. He knew the entertainment industry made money, but did it really make this much?

In the evening, after Qi Fei left, Lu Qingyu suddenly craved hot pot. Eating alone wasn't much fun, so he called Su Jixing.

Su Jixing happened to have not eaten yet, so he drove over to pick up Lu Qingyu.

In the car, Su Jixing said, "I'll take you to the most famous place nearby. You usually need a reservation to go there; otherwise, the wait is at least two hours."

In the car, Su Jixing described this hot pot restaurant in glowing terms, raising Lu Qingyu's expectations to the maximum.

Upon arriving at the restaurant, Su Jixing led Lu Qingyu directly into a private room.

After sitting down, Lu Qingyu took off his mask and looked around. This place was called a private room, but it was actually just a section of the main hall enclosed by two screens.

Su Jixing asked about Lu Qingyu's preferences, then chose a spicy soup base. He also ordered specialties like tripe and pig brains, followed by two plates of meat and two portions of vegetables, and then waited for the pot to arrive.

After ordering, Su Jixing busied himself preparing the dipping sauces for Lu Qingyu. About 20 minutes later, the soup base and all the dishes were served.

Lu Qingyu looked at the soup base covered in red oil and steaming with aroma. He put in a slice of meat, cooked it until it was medium-well, and took it out.

He took a bite with the sauce Su Jixing had prepared. Hmm, it was good, but it seemed like just ordinary good—not as amazing as Su Jixing had claimed.

Su Jixing, on the other hand, was eating very happily.

“How is it? This place is good, right?”

Lu Qingyu said, "It's alright. The flavor is okay, but the service is a bit lacking. It's not as good as the Hot Pot Restaurant Chain."

Su Jixing picked up a piece of tripe: "Hot Pot Restaurant Chain? What's that? Is it a newly opened shop somewhere?"

Lu Qingyu's hand paused while picking up food, and he asked cautiously, "There... there is no Hot Pot Restaurant Chain here?"

Su Jixing said, "Is it some internet-famous shop? I've never heard of it."

Lu Qingyu put down his chopsticks and took a deep breath: "In this hot pot restaurant, don't the staff sing for guests on their birthdays?"

Su Jixing laughed at this: "If a guest has a birthday, why would the hot pot restaurant staff sing?"

Lu Qingyu asked, "Then if you order pulled noodles, is there a noodle-swinging performance?"

Su Jixing laughed: "What kind of wild imagination do you have? Do you think a hot pot restaurant is a circus?"

Lu Qingyu no longer felt like eating. He felt it was time for the Hot Pot Restaurant Chain to give the hot pot industry a little shock.