Tycoon: From Rags to Riches

Chapter 142: Chapter 135: Legend

"Chairman Gu, my sister and I would like to propose a toast."

The elder sister, Shuyue, waited for a lull in Gu Heng’s conversation with Yangyang. She and her younger sister, Shuyu, then raised their glasses to toast him.

"Alright."

Gu Heng gave a slight nod, accepting the sisters’ toast.

Their glasses clinked softly, and Gu Heng raised his to take a sip.

"Chairman Gu, how about we dance for everyone and liven things up a bit?"

After setting her glass down, Shuyue took the opportunity to voice her idea.

"Oh?"

"That’s a good idea."

Gu Heng raised an eyebrow, a flicker of interest in his eyes.

"You got it!"

With Gu Heng’s approval, Shuyue answered cheerfully. She then led her sister, Shuyu, to the professional DJ booth up front to talk with Bai Bai and Yu Yu, who were spinning the tracks.

"Where are they off to?"

Wang Yan was sitting to Gu Heng’s right. Noticing the twin sisters’ movements, he asked Gu Heng.

"They’re going to dance a bit to liven things up."

Gu Heng raised his glass, clinking it against Wang Yan’s as he replied with a smile.

"Oh?"

"Smart girls!"

"Excellent, excellent!"

Wang Yan’s eyes lit up, and he scooted closer to Gu Heng.

"Brother Yan, where did you find all these girls?"

Seeing Wang Yan lean in, Gu Heng asked casually.

"My friend, you need to understand, that’s what agents are for."

"In this world, everything has a price."

"Forget these online influencers. Even A-list celebrities will join you on your yacht and drink with you, as long as you make it worth their while."

At this, Wang Yan gave Gu Heng a knowing look. "My friend, any celebrities you’ve got your eye on? Just give me a name. I’ll have my father’s second wife see what she can do for you."

"We can talk about celebrities later. Let’s just focus on having a good time tonight."

Gu Heng smiled, then followed up, "So, Brother Yan, what’s the going rate for each of them tonight?"

"Their fan counts and popularity vary, so they each have their own price."

"The lowest is 100,000, and the highest is around 200,000."

Wang Yan tore off a piece of freshly grilled beef jerky and answered as he chewed.

"That cheap?"

Gu Heng was taken aback. The price was honestly lower than he had expected.

"My friend, it seems you really don’t know much about this whole influencer scene."

"You see them as huge influencers with two, three, even four million followers, but their income is nowhere near as high as the average person imagines."

Wang Yan shook his head. "From what I know about the girls here, their accounts are all controlled by their MCN agencies. And they’re all locked into long-term contracts."

"Influencers have two main sources of income."

"One is ads, the other is live streaming."

"For advertising revenue, first they have to pay taxes. Then, they have to deduct team costs—things like lighting, photography, operations, and editing. After all that, their agency takes half of what’s left."

Wang Yan ticked off the points on his fingers, clearly knowing the ins and outs of the influencer industry.

"For live streaming income, the platform takes half right off the top. Then their agency takes another half of what remains. So, they might get ten thousand yuan in gifts during a stream, but they’ll only see three or four thousand of it in their own pocket."

"The girls here tonight are all beauty streamers. And the fanbase for beauty streamers is overwhelmingly male."

"And what’s the hierarchy of consumer spending these days?"

"Women are number one. Kids are number two. The elderly are number three. Hell, even dogs rank higher than men. So you tell me, with a fanbase like theirs, how are these beauty streamers supposed to attract advertisers?"

"On top of that, the beauty niche is the most competitive. Every year after the college entrance exams, a flood of new, young, beautiful girls enters the market. Big-name influencers like them might land a few cosmetics ads during the 618 or Double 11 shopping festivals, but the pay is usually rock-bottom."

Wang Yan didn’t bother to lower his voice as he talked, despite the girls sitting right next to him.

"Brother Yan, stop..."

"You’re going to make me cry."

Yuanyuan, the big-shot influencer with five million followers, snuggled up to Wang Yan. She put on a pitiful expression and playfully stuffed a strawberry into his mouth.

"What have you got to cry about?"

"Tell me, how many other beauty streamers land more ad deals than you do?"

Wang Yan said, annoyed, "If you’re crying, what’s everyone else supposed to do? Go jump in a river?"

"Hehe..."

"I was just trying to set the mood."

Yuanyuan’s smile returned. She leaned over and kissed Wang Yan on the cheek. "Brother Yan, you’re the best~"

Gu Heng watched the scene unfold. ’How oddly amusing,’ he thought.

Take Yuanyuan, for example. To her fans, she projected the image of a strong, sophisticated woman, full of charm and grace. But here, in front of Wang Yan, she was like a little bird, nestling close and constantly acting cute.

"So? What do you think?"

"This little flower I’ve been cultivating... she’s bloomed quite beautifully, hasn’t she?"

"When I first met her, she only had tens of thousands of fans. Now she has over five million."

Wang Yan said with a chuckle, but there was no smugness or pride in his expression.

If he had to put it into words, Gu Heng felt that Wang Yan’s tone was like someone talking about a stray kitten they’d taken in—one that had grown up nicely and was now very well-behaved.

"Very impressive."

Gu Heng nodded slightly.

"If they can’t land ad deals, live streaming is the only way they can make money."

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