The company's audit and communication with Zhu Lingyun, providing some material assistance, were smoothly concluded by Ding Yun in less than a week.
However, the remaining two pending matters presented quite a challenge.
To her, the Trans-Temporal Second-hand Trading Device was already quite functional. Compared to the super-fast growth farm golden finger she had previously tested, it was immensely satisfactory. But perhaps because of this, her threshold for satisfaction had been significantly lowered. She couldn't think of any more flaws in the trading device to criticize or suggest improvements for.
As for dealing with the Zhou family, Ding Yun's difficulty stemmed from the fact that they lived in a society governed by law. She was unwilling to engage in illegal activities, and she lacked the influence to resort to power-play. Consequently, she hadn't devised a concrete plan. This was the primary reason for her dilemma.
Since neither of these matters was urgent and she had a lifetime to slowly work on them, Ding Yun was unhurriedly pondering them in private. When she couldn't figure them out on her own, she changed her approach, altered the background settings, and posted online rewards seeking suggestions. For answers she deemed valuable or actionable, she would meticulously record and contemplate them.
After half a month of gathering collective wisdom, Ding Yun still had no concrete ideas regarding the testing of the Trans-Temporal Second-hand Trading Device. However, concerning the Zhou family, she had indeed formulated some thoughts: establish a small talent agency and sign Zhou Shou, who was still working as an extra, dreaming of sudden stardom. Ideally, she would trick him into signing a harsh contract. Then, she could mold him however she pleased.
With this idea in mind, Ding Yun quickly began the practical steps. She again engaged a proxy company to register the talent agency. In addition, she hired a headhunting firm to recruit employees capable of forming the entire agency framework. In comparison to establishing the skincare company at the beginning, Ding Yun found this process much easier. She only needed to set the general direction and requirements, and the rest could be handled by others for a fee.
Of course, even with this approach, things couldn't be finalized in a day or two. It took nearly a month before a respectable talent agency was officially established. They also symbolically signed a few attractive newcomers. Although Ding Yun's primary motivation for founding this agency was to sign Zhou Shou and torment him, it would be a waste to solely pursue this one objective with an entire agency. Zhou Shou wasn't worth such an extensive effort. Therefore, normal operations were necessary. This was where the newly signed artists came into play. While Ding Yun wouldn't overly invest her energy in them, she certainly wouldn't neglect or intentionally mistreat them. Resources and training would be provided normally. As for whether they would achieve success, that was beyond her control.
As soon as the company was established, Ding Yun arranged a meeting with the poached star agent, Hu Wei. Upon meeting, she directly revealed the core purpose of establishing the agency: to have him find a way to sign Zhou Shou and then assign him demanding, risky, and troublesome work. The contract duration had to be long, the penalty for breach of contract high, and the base salary low. A higher profit share was acceptable, as she had no intention of providing him with good resources. She planned to exclusively assign him jobs worth a few hundred yuan that were also dangerous. With such a profit share, how much could he truly earn?
The newly appointed star agent, after hearing Ding Yun's description, had his mouth twitching in shock. However, being experienced and well-traveled, he quickly composed himself. He assured her he would accomplish the task. As an afterthought, he even inquired if she merely intended to torment Zhou Shou or wished for his demise. If it was the latter, the price would be different. In this day and age, death from overwork or accidents wasn't uncommon. Even several major stars had died suddenly, let alone an unknown extra. By keeping him working non-stop, he believed Zhou Shou wouldn't last long.
However, Ding Yun stated that she didn't want to pay compensation to Hu Lin, so such measures were unnecessary. She just wanted to torment him, making him feel hopeful yet perpetually out of reach, like a donkey chasing a carrot. Ding Yun then dismissed the agent and kept a close eye on his actions, observing how he would handle Zhou Shou.
The process was surprisingly straightforward. As soon as the agent approached Zhou Shou to express interest in signing him, Zhou Shou eagerly agreed. He didn't scrutinize the contract details, only expressing his keen interest in the prospect of being cast in several films or television series annually, as promised by the agent. He boasted that he had always lacked opportunities and resources, otherwise, he would have already achieved stardom, exuding immense confidence. None of Ding Yun's anticipated concerns, such as Zhou Shou refusing or making demands, materialized. The process was alarmingly smooth. Ding Yun wondered if Zhou Shou was simply too naive or if the original owner of the body was too foolish to have been so easily deceived. Alternatively, perhaps Zhou Shou's cunning was solely focused on deceiving women, leaving him lacking in other areas. It was also possible that after so many years of no one willing to sign him, encountering someone who finally offered a contract, he was too eager to get involved to care about the details.
Regardless of the reasons, Zhou Shou was successfully signed. Subsequently, he was assigned various dirty, exhausting, dangerous jobs that few people wanted, and which barely showcased his face.
In film and television, not all roles are likable, nor can all actors portray an unlikable character profoundly or transform audience perception to make them more appealing. Furthermore, in this era, looks are paramount. If the costumes, makeup, and styling are subpar or clash with current aesthetics, it's difficult to capture the audience's attention. Even established celebrities with substantial fan bases are mocked if their appearance declines. This is even more so for someone with no fame. Therefore, Ding Yun was quite certain that the jobs assigned to Zhou Shou by her hired agent were all unlikable, challenging, dangerous roles that garnered little attention. She was so satisfied that she gave the agent a raise and specially invested in a web series for the remaining artists to test the waters.
None of this was hidden from Zhou Shou. However, as he didn't know who the company owner was, he assumed the agent was deliberately making things difficult for him and withholding good opportunities. He angrily confronted the agent. But Hu Wei, using company policy as an excuse and stating that if he was unsatisfied, he could pay the termination fee to break the contract, easily dismissed Zhou Shou's complaints.