32: Our company has a relationship with Xu Sishi.

“Excellent, excellent. Your performance was outstanding, and your emotions were perfectly conveyed.”

In truth, Qin Shou knew nothing about acting; he was utterly clueless. He was simply captivated by the young woman's beauty and her pitiable performance. But this didn't stop him from feigning profundity, adopting the air of a professional, and showing off.

Qin Shou continued, getting straight to the point: “We're shooting a web drama. If you're willing, the female lead role is yours. What do you think? Are you interested?”

“Ah? It’s… it’s done already?”

Xu Nanqin hadn't fully disengaged from her previous emotions and was momentarily bewildered. She hadn't expected it to be settled so quickly, and for her to be offered the lead role directly.

“Yes, why do you think it would be more complicated? If you have no issues, then we can discuss the terms of your compensation right now.”

“I have no issues, I'm willing to act.”

Xu Nanqin snapped back to reality and quickly nodded in agreement.

While most art school students come from comfortable backgrounds and aren't short on money, Xu Nanqin's situation was a bit different.

Her family background was quite ordinary; her parents were both average wage earners, and supporting her through university was already a struggle. Therefore, during her university years, she had always worked part-time, taking on various jobs to supplement her living expenses and lighten her family's burden.

So, for her, this opportunity to play the female lead in a web drama was not just a rare practical experience but also a significant source of income, which was very important to her.

“Alright, we initially plan to shoot this web drama as a trilogy: Part One, Part Two, and Part Three. Our intention is to film Part One first. After it airs online, we'll see the audience's reaction and market feedback before deciding whether to continue with the subsequent parts. For this first part, I'm offering you 30,000 yuan. Is that acceptable?”

Because she was a newcomer, Qin Shou pressed the price extremely low, revealing his true exploitative nature. Xu Nanqin couldn't help but frown. Although she studied acting, she hadn't officially filmed anything yet and hadn't expected the price to be so low.

“Only 30,000?”

Xu Nanqin frowned, a little disappointed. She was, after all, in the performing arts industry and knew many senior students who had graduated. Even for a web drama, the lead actors' pay shouldn't be this low.

“Young lady, it's not low. Think about the current market. Isn't it hard to find work? Look at your classmates' situations now.”

“This first role is the female lead; it's your stepping stone into the industry, understand? If you do well in your first role and make a name for yourself, there will be plenty of opportunities later.”

“You surely don't want to study acting for three years only to change careers after graduation, do you? Young people, you need to think long-term, don't just consider immediate gains, understand?”

“What's most important now is to seize the opportunity of the female lead role and hone your acting Skills. Don't always look at the money; look forward!”

Qin Shou, having been in society for many years, was a seasoned veteran. He had a knack for persuasion and secretly activated his Skill, Skill, while speaking. With a torrent of PUA and grand promises, he immediately bluffed Xu Nanqin.

Guo Gang, observing from the side, thought, “Old Qin, this son of a gun is truly ruthless! He's no different from those black-hearted bosses who make grand promises to their employees. In fact, Qin Shou is even more ruthless. How can you have the nerve to offer only 30,000 yuan to such a delicate beauty, especially when she has to perform some suggestive scenes?”

Xu Nanqin's face showed a hint of hesitation. For some reason, although she felt there was something off about Qin Shou's words, as if something wasn't quite right, when she thought about it carefully, she couldn't find a suitable reason to refute him. It just felt strange, but she couldn't pinpoint why, and she was inexplicably bluffed by Qin Shou.

Of course, she didn't know that she was being swayed by Qin Shou's Skill, Skill. The more beautiful the girl, the more powerful Qin Shou's Skill was.

Xu Nanqin also thought about it: many of her classmates from better-off families had jobs arranged by their parents after graduation. Those from less fortunate backgrounds became streamers after graduating, but being a female streamer wasn't easy now. The men watching live streams were all very shrewd, only watching for free and never sending gifts.

Even after exhausting themselves streaming, they didn't earn much, unless they were willing to go all out, willing to do some “extreme acts,” revealing more to show men what they liked. But even then, most people still watched for free. The ‘big brothers’ were all very shrewd; they would spend money, but then they would demand to meet offline, and if they didn’t meet, the ‘big brothers’ wouldn't maintain their support.

Moreover, even if streamers were willing to follow the ‘big brothers’ requests, the risks were still enormous. Their live streams could be banned by the platform at any time. So, for her, being able to film a web drama was definitely better than being a streamer, and she indeed needed money to support herself, but no matter how she thought about it, 30,000 was too little.

Seeing Xu Nanqin still undecided, Qin Shou activated Skill, Skill, and quickly intensified his efforts, continuing to persuade her.

“This is a web drama, so the shooting period is very short. I estimate the first part will take just over three months.”

“You do the math: three months for 30,000 yuan averages out to about 10,000 yuan a month.”

“Plus, lunch boxes are provided every day on set. Think about it, in this day and age, where can you find a job that pays 10,000 a month and includes meals?”

Seeing Xu Nanqin still hesitating, Qin Shou thought, this girl is too focused on money. He finally decided to play his trump card.

Of course, Qin Shou didn't know that, in Guo Gang's eyes, Qin Shou was the exploitative scrooge who was obsessed with money.

“Let me tell you, do you know National Goddess Xu Sishi?”

“Our company actually has some connection with her. If you perform well, who knows, you might get a chance to appear in one or two scenes in her TV dramas in the future.”

Guo Gang's eyes widened. He thought, “Old Qin, you can't lie like that. You're a damn loser; when did you get connected with National Goddess Xu Sishi?”

However, what happened next stunned Guo Gang.

Qin Shou took out his phone, opened a photo, and showed it to Xu Nanqin.

“You can search online; Xu Sishi is filming in the City these days.”

“This is a meal I had with her the day before yesterday, discussing the company's development.”

“Look, the date on the photo is the day before yesterday.”

Saying this, Qin Shou pointed to the date in the upper right corner of the photo.

Seeing this photo, Xu Nanqin's eyes lit up, and Guo Gang was dumbfounded.

“Okay, I'm willing. Director, what should I call you?”

Xu Nanqin nodded vigorously. In her heart, if this web drama company was indeed backed by Xu Sishi, then as long as she performed well enough, she wouldn't have to worry about not having opportunities to take off in the future. Who doesn't have a dream of becoming a star?

“My name is Qin Shou. You can call me Director Qin from now on!”

Qin Shou smiled and put away his phone, satisfied.

He had anticipated this all along, which was why he had taken the photo with Xu Sishi – to fool these young people.