Chapter 80: 080

Chapter 80

Jiang Juyou was a person with scars. She didn't want them to be exposed, nor did she want to touch others'. When the system said something that hinted at a backstory, she was about to change the subject to give him privacy, but the system spoke first:

"They don't know I've gained self-awareness. I've tampered with some data and kept some pocket money for myself."

On any other day, Jiang Juyou would have laughed at this, but today she was momentarily stunned.

She had suspected before that the system seemed different from the artificial intelligence she knew. No matter how advanced the civilization that created it, an AI might have the ability to think, but it would never have emotions. Yet he did.

Jiang Juyou slowly sat up on the sofa, pulled a cushion behind her back, and started chatting with him casually. "How much do you have?"

Feeling a bit tired, Jiang Juyou's attention was somewhat scattered, and she yawned from time to time. She coughed lightly twice, changed her lying position, and was about to joke with him, saying that if it was just a few hundred dollars, forget about it. But the next second, a string of numbers appeared before her eyes.

[72,019,237,928.65]

"Cough cough cough—" Jiang Juyou coughed violently, even sitting up abruptly on the sofa, exclaiming, "This is far more than just a little pocket money!"

The number was larger than her phone number.

He explained, "I'm not allowed to keep money in my account, but I can hack into your computers to perform operations. I've acquired controlling stakes in many companies and invested in many businesses."

As he spoke, that proud feeling emerged again. Jiang Juyou could almost see his electronic tail perking up.

She knew he had this ability; otherwise, how could the establishment of subsidiaries be so quiet, and how could those applications be approved the day after they were submitted?

Even Jiang Juyou's equity changes were handled by him, preparing the official documents.

Basically, as long as there was internet, he could operate.

At the same time, netizens online couldn't contain their curiosity and began to dig into Random Entertainment's sources of funding.

"Title: Gossip Discussion / I think I've found something [Random Entertainment related]"

"Random Entertainment's equity has changed again. Jiang Juyou holds 37%, Random Technology holds 60%, and Cong Lixia holds 3%."

"But! The largest shareholder of Random Technology is Random Real Estate, and the largest shareholder of Random Real Estate is Random Manufacturing, holding 51%. The remaining shares belong to Cong Lixia and Jiang Juyou, with Jiang Juyou holding 25% as the second-largest shareholder. And the largest shareholder of Random Manufacturing is Jiang Juyou..."

"In case you didn't understand what this means, to put it simply, on the surface, Jiang Juyou only has 37% of Random Entertainment's shares, but if you trace it up, the largest shareholder and actual controller is still Jiang Juyou."

"I also checked, and Random Technology, Random Real Estate, and Random Manufacturing have been established for over 20 years. They were renamed to 'Random' last year."

"Also, the three new buildings added to Random Entertainment aren't under Random Entertainment as rumored, but under Random Real Estate, and are leased to Random Entertainment."

"That trainee campus is owned by Random Real Estate and is also leased to Random Entertainment."

"There's also information that Random Real Estate is building a film and television base."

"The original largest shareholder of those three companies was Cong Lixia, but it was recently changed to Jiang Juyou."

"At this point, we can pretty much confirm Cong Lixia's identity as the brother-in-law."

Comments section:

"...This is making my head spin."

"No wonder Random Entertainment has so many weird merchandise. So this is where it all comes from."

"I don't accept it, I don't accept the brother-in-law... I'm not listening!"

"It's not hard to understand. It means they opened their wallet, counted the money, and then put it in another wallet. The money is still in their hands."

-

With so much information about Random Entertainment dug up online, those investment companies were extremely envious. Jiang Juyou had received quite a few dinner invitations from investors these days. At the dinner table, they tried to probe her intentions both directly and indirectly, but Jiang Juyou skillfully deflected all their attempts.

Random Entertainment had been established for over a year and had been popular for just as long, but it was at this moment that it truly entered the entertainment circle.

The debut competition had just finished its second public performance, but invitations for commercial performances in the industry were already pouring in. At the dinner parties, Jiang Juyou was even "educated" about giving the kids more opportunities to showcase themselves, saying that more exposure would help accumulate public goodwill. They pushed quite a few resources onto those trainees.

It was also early December, the end of the year, and summary-style activities and ceremonies were increasing. Jiang Juyou actually let the trainees attend a ceremony as opening guests.

Random Entertainment's fans also felt that they were getting closer to those circles often seen in hot searches.

Not only did the trainees have more external engagements, but song promotions also became easier. Even though the second public performance was over, songs from the first public performance belatedly became popular. This wasn't just popular among fans or the kind of popularity where the public doesn't know the original singer, but truly popular - known by the general public.

Now, if you open a short video app and scroll through ten videos, four of them use Group C's first public performance song as BGM, and two are covers. With this ratio, how can you say it's not popular?

In the practice room, Pei Luming hugged his phone, constantly refreshing. He looked at the pinned video; every time he refreshed, its likes, comments, and shares would increase.

"Nine million five hundred thousand!!!" He roared in anger, excitedly taking a horse stance and gripping his phone tightly, shaking it several times.

All of this was thanks to Gao Xiayu and Chen Wu.

They were always faster than other groups in selecting and arranging songs, and their subsequent work was also quick. This always left them with plenty of time to practice dancing. Before the second public performance, Gao Xiayu suggested making a short video MV for their first public performance song. This was partly intended to help Chen Wu change his mood. So the two of them began writing scripts and storyboarding, and finally shot a vertical MV using their phones.

Afterwards, they were busy preparing for the second public performance while editing the video. It wasn't until after the second public performance that they had time to release it.

The fans were just waiting for the daily Douyin update as usual, but unexpectedly got an MV.

The opening sound was so familiar - it was what they heard every day when they put on their headphones and immersed themselves in their own world.

The other six people gradually gathered around Pei Luming, watching the phone together.

He refreshed again, and the number of likes had increased once more. Just as Pei Luming was about to turn around and hug Gao Xiayu while crying tears of joy, all seven of their phones rang simultaneously.

This notification sound--

It was unmistakably from the company's internal software.

Pei Luming, who had just been looking emotional, immediately changed his expression and picked up his phone to check the notification.

The notification wasn't written for the trainees, but for the fans. It was just sent to their company group to keep them informed. The specific content was--

"Title: Gossip Discussion/Report -- Random Entertainment is really here to make money this time!"

"Just officially announced! The Galexy Artist Fan Interaction Platform is now open, with many artists about to join, and new features have been launched!"

"You can now have 1-on-1 chats!"

Comments section:

"It's not 1-on-1, but close enough."

"I saw it, and I also saw that they're going to open pop-up stores. I'm curious about the card designs and themes this time, and also about the full-price merchandise. My wallet is getting a bit impatient!"

"It's not 1-on-1, it's artists creating groups that fans pay to join, and the group disbands after the chat. From the fan's perspective, it's 1-on-1, but not for the artist. It costs two yuan to join a group once, and there's no chat history after the group disbands. There's also a monthly pass for forty-five yuan, which will keep the chat history."

"Two yuan, Random Entertainment, I'm really crying! They're even considering us poor people!"

Little Jasmines: We'll take turns keeping watch with our two eyes, let's see who dares not to attend every session!