The Resources Department works quickly. As soon as Ms. Grant received the accurate information, she immediately called back. Once the call was answered, she got straight to the point with Eric Carter: “The company has arranged a substitute guest spot for ‘I Am Really a Singer.’”

“The contract—just let the company pick a time and I’ll come over to terminate it,” Eric Carter replied just as straightforwardly.

“Let’s do it tomorrow. You can come to the company to sign the ‘Singer’ contract then,” Ms. Grant set the time.

The company was afraid of complications if things dragged on. If it weren’t already dusk and too late today, they would have wanted to get rid of this burden immediately.

“No problem.” After agreeing, Eric Carter deliberately lowered her voice, sounding a bit vulnerable as she asked, “Ms. Grant, is there something wrong with the company’s crisis PR?”

“All emergency PR is handled by professionals, there’s definitely no problem,” Ms. Grant immediately explained. “Think about it, you’re the company’s face... our most outstanding artist. Of course we want your path to be smoother. This negative news came out of nowhere, with no warning at all, and the public reaction was way beyond our expectations.”

“Well—alright,” Eric Carter responded.

She couldn’t pin the blame on the company, and certainly not on herself.

Who can control the blind and ignorant tide of public opinion? If anyone is to blame, it’s fate and luck. Ms. Grant had a whole list of reasons in her mind to prove the company had done nothing wrong, but when it came time to speak, she held back. Going from heaven to hell is a fatal blow; once your reputation is dead, there’s no coming back, so what’s the point in arguing? Twenty-one is barely old enough to have graduated college—pretty pitiful, really.

After thinking it over, Ms. Grant softened her tone a bit and said, “I’ve managed you for two years now, so I’ll help you one more time. I’ll pull some strings to make sure Mango TV looks after you, at least to guarantee you won’t be maliciously edited.”

“Thank you.” Eric Carter deliberately made her voice tremble, sounding like she was about to cry. “After being wronged, Ms. Grant, you’re the only one who’s helped me.”

“...Get some rest.”

“Go to Mango TV, don’t be late. Things aren’t like they used to be.”

“Whatever you do, don’t offend the music director.”

After giving her instructions and hanging up, the words “only one” echoed in Ms. Grant’s ears and wouldn’t go away. She really did call a producer she knew at the show. After more than ten years in the entertainment industry, Ms. Grant still had some connections at the major TV stations.

After making the arrangements, Ms. Grant muttered to herself, “Little Eric’s singing is honestly average, and I haven’t seen any creativity. The only reason she got popular after debuting was pure luck. Now, with all this negative press, her biggest advantage has become her biggest weakness. In this situation, no show will help.”

An artist’s management team includes the main agent, executive agent, film and TV agent, and business agent. Eric Carter used to have three business agents. What she didn’t know was that when the scandal broke, the team disbanded. For now, let’s set that aside.

Currently, there are four hit music shows in China: “I Am Really a Singer,” “Masked Singer,” “Son of the Future,” and “The Voice of China.”

Kangfei Company was eager to get rid of this hot potato, so their first resource connection was with Masked Singer.

The production director at Lychee TV’s Masked Singer said, “Eric Carter? Don’t kid me. We don’t want our show to flop. Take my advice, pick someone else to promote. It’s a shame to lose a cash cow, but sometimes you have to cut your losses.”

So they settled for second best, trading even more resources to get a spot on Mango TV’s “I Am Really a Singer,” which was already halfway through its season.

o: Two chapters a day, about five thousand words. Throwing flowers, please vote for recommendations and monthly tickets.

Chapter Four: The Complete Gift Pack (Part 1)

【Jazz Dance Mastery】

【Enchanting Eyes】

【Special Item: The Best Stomach Medicine in Heaven and Earth】

【“Wheat Waves in the Wind” Gift Pack】

【“Kiss Everywhere” Gift Pack】

【Special Grand Prize: Violin Demon Niccolò Paganini’s Violin Talent】

Over the next two days, Eric Carter went to Kangfei Company to terminate her contract. The process went smoothly without any complications. When Eric Carter signed her name on the contract, she made sure to get the itinerary contract first—she would participate in “I Am Really a Singer.” Mango TV’s production team offered 200,000 yuan, and at this point, she had no room to negotiate.

The two days of waiting weren’t wasted either. Eric Carter managed to eat spicy food five times, completing a task in her “Personality List” and earning a total of 2 personality coins.

Once she had saved up five personality coins, Eric Carter immediately drew a blind box. The prize pool was as shown above.

“Kiss Everywhere” was often used as background music in Douyin short videos, so Eric Carter was pretty familiar with it—it’s a song by Miriam Yeung.

And “Wheat Waves in the Wind” is one of Li Jian’s signature songs. Jazz Dance Mastery is a great prize, but not much help on the “I Am Really a Singer” stage. She hoped to draw something that would help with the competition, since this opportunity was hard to come by.

What really made Eric Carter envious was the special grand prize. If she drew that, it wouldn’t just be a lucky break—it would be instant riches.

Paganini was just too powerful. In the violin world, there are only two kinds of violinists: Paganini, and everyone else.

In Western vocabulary, Paganini isn’t just a name—it’s also an adjective, meaning someone with extraordinary achievement in the arts.

“The Paganini of the piano” refers to [the virtuoso] Liszt; “The Paganini of the guitar” refers to [guitar god] Augustin; “The Paganini of the huqin” refers to [King of the Huqin] Huang Anyuan, and so on.