July 9th, Saturday.
Gu Qingqing and the other two routinely arrived at Flash Vehicle Industry as usual.
After this week's filming, Zhao Xianbo and Qin Siyu's work would conclude.
One phase of the Taobao store's filming tasks was complete, and the university had also entered summer vacation.
"Boss Tan, can we work part-time at your factory during the summer?"
Qin Siyu asked with a grin, stopping Tan Jincheng who was about to leave.
She had heard that Gu Qingqing was helping Boss Tan with Taobao store operations this summer and wasn't going home.
She also wanted to stay and work for the summer to earn some living expenses for the next semester.
"Are you sure? University students coming to a factory for summer jobs?"
Tan Jincheng looked at her with a puzzled expression.
"University students need to eat too, what's wrong with working a summer job at a factory? Can we or not?"
Zhao Xianbo chimed in with a smile.
In Zhao Xianbo's eyes, Boss Tan, who was only about two years older than her, was quite kind.
Besides a 200 yuan daily wage, he also subsidized 50 yuan for transportation and provided lunch.
Occasionally, if he had time to drive them back, he would also treat them to a meal; he was a very generous person.
"Part-time wages in the factory aren't that high. It's probably only a hundred or eighty yuan a day, and it's much more tiring than your filming work."
"What's the big deal? Anyway, we don't have much to do at home. Instead of wasting two months at home, we might as well earn some money to spend. Besides, isn't Qingqing here too? If we stay, she'll have company,"
Qin Siyu said, glancing at Gu Qingqing next to her.
Tan Jincheng couldn't help but glance at her.
She usually dressed plainly and without much fuss, but today she had tied her hair into a small ponytail, looking capable and full of vigor.
"What do you think?"
Gu Qingqing smiled,
"Why ask me? You decide for yourself."
There was a hint of shyness in her tone.
"Alright then, suit yourselves. Later, you can go to the HR department yourselves and find Chen Jinwen. Just tell him I agreed, and you can discuss the specifics with him. I still have to go to Shanghai, so I don't have time to chat much with you."
Immediately after, Tan Jincheng added,
"It's not convenient for you to commute back and forth, so I'll have Manager Chen arrange a staff dormitory for you then. I remember there are still empty ones."
The two quickly replied happily,
"Okay, thank you, Boss Tan."
Gu Qingqing, on the other hand, asked,
"You're going to Shanghai? Another business trip?"
Tan Jincheng's eyes darted around, then he waved his hand, signaling Zhao Xianbo and Qin Siyu to get to work.
After they walked away, he smiled at Gu Qingqing and said,
"That's right, I'm going to sign an endorsement contract. Are you interested in seeing a celebrity?"
"Is it Chun Ge? Why would they be in Shanghai?"
Gu Qingqing asked with some curiosity.
"Their management company is in Shanghai. If you're lucky, you might even run into other celebrities."
Gu Qingqing hesitated for a long while before finally asking, unable to hold back,
"Is it appropriate for me to go? Will it affect your work, and how long will we be gone?"
"Today is for signing the formal contract and discussing the advertising shoot plan. If it's quick, we can be back today. If it's slower, we'll stay one night and return tomorrow."
No matter what, Gu Qingqing was an 18-year-old girl, and she was still a little curious about seeing celebrities from TV, even if they weren't her idols.
After confirming the itinerary, she finally mustered up her courage.
"It really won't affect your work? Also, do we need to keep it a secret? It seems like very few people in your company know about this, right?"
"It doesn't affect anything. Once the contract is officially signed, they'll promote it themselves. This is also a form of marketing, so there's no need for secrecy."
This was the benefit of collaborating with popular talent show contestants.
They also needed exposure, and signing endorsement contracts before their official debut was also a form of self-promotion, which would be a major highlight for the finals.
Flash Vehicle's decided promotion plan was not to conduct large-scale promotion before the finals.
After the finals concluded, advertisements across print media, online platforms, and local TV stations would follow.
The initial buzz would be maintained by the management company, saving money.
Thanks to Zhang Mingcan, Tan Jincheng resolved his most pressing financial issues before going to Shanghai.
He received a 3 million yuan bridge loan from Jinpeng Trade and a 5 million yuan low-interest one-year loan from the bank, totaling 8 million yuan in funds, which eliminated his worries.
For this round of promotion, Tan Jincheng wanted to try online advertising.
In 2005, the number of internet users had already reached 100 million.
These 100 million internet users might not significantly impact Flash Vehicle's current sales, but they were at least a demographic willing to accept new things, predominantly young people.
Honestly, Chun Ge's stage image was truly hard to describe; it subtly gave off a "low-end" vibe, especially during the finals and in the subsequent years, with all sorts of internet memes.
Flash Vehicle hiring her as an endorser would subtly make ordinary people feel that the brand was also "low-end," but what did it matter?
Currently, Flash Vehicle was indeed quite "low-end."
How sophisticated could cars produced by a factory of just over 100 people be?
It would be even better if Flash Vehicle could be incorporated into future memes.
Referencing my brother, you see, being infamous is still being famous.
As for the future, the image could gradually be changed by replacing her with other endorsers.
Xiaomi was initially synonymous with low prices, but by 2023, it could sell for thousands and even manufacture cars.
So, from every perspective, Chun Ge's current image and market value were quite compatible with Flash Vehicle, which was most beneficial for Flash Vehicle's promotion.
If you had someone with Xiao Liu's ethereal image riding a cool black Flash Vehicle for an advertisement, it would seem a bit mismatched.
Instead, Chun Ge in a leather outfit would be more suitable.
If done right, it might even pique the buying desire of some youths with customized scooters.
"Are you coming or not? If you are, don't hesitate. I still need to pick up the lawyer. Don't worry, the lawyer is a woman in her thirties. If we need to stay overnight, you two can share a room."
Seeing Gu Qingqing looking conflicted, wanting to go and experience it but also a little scared, Tan Jincheng asked with a smile.
"Then, I'll go for fun?"
"Let's go. If it's quick, we'll be back today. It's my first time seeing a celebrity too, I might be scared, so you can lend me some support."
Gu Qingqing pursed her lips,
"What kind of support can I give you? I've never experienced such a scene."
"You can. You're much prettier than Chun Ge, so they won't think I'm some fan with bad intentions and try to hike up the price on me at the last minute."
"No way."
"Stop dawdling, let's go. It's almost 8:30 already. We'll arrive around noon. If we delay any longer, we'll really have to spend the night in Shanghai."
"Alright then, I'll go tell my classmate."
Why he invited Gu Qingqing, Tan Jincheng himself couldn't say for sure.
Perhaps they were already quite familiar, a friend's desire to share, perhaps it was just a coincidence, or perhaps something else.
Gu Qingqing, on her end, hurriedly ran into the filming studio, briefly explained to Qin Siyu and Zhao Xianbo, and then quickly left, leaving the two looking at each other in confusion.
"Qingqing and this Boss Tan definitely aren't just working part-time,"
Qin Siyu said to Zhao Xianbo.
Zhao Xianbo rolled her eyes,
"I'm not stupid. Just do your work honestly, don't mind so much."
Zhao Xianbo and Zhao Wenjia, who shared a dorm with Gu Qingqing, were from the same hometown.
This job was also recommended by Zhao Wenjia to Gu Qingqing.
Previously, she had said that the filming was near the school, but it turned out that when it was their turn to film, they had to go to Beicang.
Although Gu Qingqing always came along, claiming to learn Taobao store operations, sometimes during filming breaks, Zhao Xianbo would notice that Gu Qingqing wasn't in the Taobao store's office area at all.
Sometimes she couldn't be seen, other times she was wandering around the factory alone, which didn't seem like she was working a part-time job.
Another point Zhao Xianbo noticed was that whenever Gu Qingqing was with Boss Tan, there would be a chance for Boss Tan to drive them home after work in the evening, and they could also have a good meal.
Otherwise, there was no such luck.
If she couldn't even notice so many details, then she was truly brain-dead.
Since his rebirth, it was like checking off a list, and this time Tan Jincheng was going to check off Shanghai.
There were no high-speed railways or cross-sea bridges, but luckily he had a car and could drive on the highway.
Traveling wasn't that convenient in those years.
For closer destinations, one had to endure minibusses abandoning passengers halfway; for farther ones, it involved various transfers on green-skinned trains.
In more remote areas, going out to work was still quite daunting due to the sheer inconvenience.
Tan Jincheng still remembered an amusing incident: around 2010, when he returned home for Chinese New Year, a younger cousin found a girlfriend.
The girlfriend wanted to take him home for New Year's to meet her parents.
The area was quite remote, so the guy had to transfer from a train to a bus, then from a bus to a motorcycle, and then there was a section of mountain road to walk.
Because it rained, the two-way trip completely wore him out.
He was so scared that he broke up with her upon returning, and for this, he even got a beating from his father, who accused him of being snobbish and prioritizing wealth over love.
"Sister Zhou, I'll be relying on you today. Soon there will be a formal endorsement contract and an advertising contract. Please review them again to see if there are any discrepancies from what we discussed before."
Tan Jincheng sat in the passenger seat, turning his head to speak to the lawyer Zhou Biyu in the back.
Zhou Biyu was 37 years old this year, with the short hair typical of a professional woman, looking very capable.
She was recommended by the law firm that Tan Jincheng had previously cooperated with, and she was quite familiar with the legal terms of celebrity endorsement and advertising contracts.
"Don't worry, if it's the same as what we discussed before, then there shouldn't be any problems today, as long as they don't change the wording,"
Zhou Biyu said with a somewhat helpless smile.
Boss Tan, whether from hearsay or watching too many TV dramas, seemed extremely wary of entertainment industry contracts, studying them very seriously.
If it weren't for the repeated assurances from the referrer, Zhou Biyu would have thought that this young man didn't trust her professionalism.
In fact, the terms of both contracts had already been broadly discussed, so going there was just for signing.
Coincidentally, the endorser was also on vacation, and advertising shoot times could be scheduled, so no major issues were expected.
However, a last-minute price hike was indeed possible.
These management companies generally size people up before acting.
Previously, they had misunderstood Boss Tan to be a fan of the endorser and were even considering if they could charge more.
Thinking of this, Zhou Biyu looked at Gu Qingqing, who was sitting next to her, looking slightly nervous.
It was clear that this girl was not Boss Tan's secretary, perhaps not even a company employee, because she had brought nothing but a small backpack.
Then, looking at Tan Jincheng in front, Zhou Biyu found it hard to imagine how, with such a beautiful woman beside him, he would choose an endorser who seemed very awkwardly eccentric.
(End of chapter)
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