Goddess Strategy GL - Chapter 1

“Look, it’s snowing.” Assistant Xiao Yuan was from the south, and even though she had been in B-City for many years, she still had an unconcealable enthusiasm for snow.

Zhao Xin leaned back in the rear seat, resting with her eyes closed. Hearing this, she only gave a gentle “Mm.” After more than ten years in B-City, she had long grown used to its dry climate and the months-long snow in winter. But deep down, she was still the girl from the water towns of Jiangnan—she feared dryness, and she feared the bone-cutting wind of the deep winter.

“Driver, let’s go to South Plaza Road, there’s a surprise!” Xiao Yuan suddenly remembered something and urged the driver to change routes.

Only then did Zhao Xin open her eyes. “What is it? Something important?”

Xiao Yuan said, “Boss, did you forget? Your advertisement went up today.”

Zhao Xin then recalled that the global endorsement ad she had just accepted for Brand C was placed in B-City’s most expensive advertising space today. At the same time, she was in talks for several other top-tier endorsements, and next month, she would also be featured on the US, Italian, French, and Australian editions of V Magazine as Brand C’s first Chinese Global Spokesperson.

She was only 28 years old now.

Ten years ago, Zhao Xin became a national idol based on the strength of a single TV drama. Ten years later, she swept through the fashion world again, becoming the darling of numerous brands.

“Then let’s go take a look.”

The tone was still flat. Xiao Yuan secretly glanced back. Zhao Xin was quietly looking out the window, her eyes completely calm, as if this news held no surprise for her.

Brand C’s global endorsement! Xiao Yuan was practically roaring inside—this was a dream countless stars longed for! Just the sponsorship contracts from these types of top-tier brands were enough for those celebrities to spread press releases all over major media outlets. Yet now, she was watching a stack of press release drafts being thrown into the shredder.

Zhao Xin said, “It’s not necessary. We already put one out when I secured the endorsement.”

The manager said, “Zhao Xin doesn’t need to seek that kind of presence.”

So, Xiao Yuan could only scroll through gossip forums with a bleeding heart, watching the water armies from other celebrities’ studios frantically pouring out jealousy. Some water armies started digging up Patrons A, B, C, and D to deduce the origins of the billboard spot, while some anti-fans used the opportunity to question the authenticity of the endorsement, deliberately twisting facts to smear her. More often, it was the fans who started throwing data and evidence to slap back, causing constant disputes and a bloodbath of comments.

Amidst this chaotic gossip section, a little fan quietly surfaced and whispered a sentence: “Don’t you think our Boss lacks for nothing—endorsements, Best Actress awards, magazine covers—she only lacks a companion?”

Xiao Yuan was instantly touched. Over the past few years, Zhao Xin had won more and more awards, and her fame had grown greater and greater. But her personal life had become increasingly monotonous. She didn’t like going out, and most of her social life was arranged by her manager. She didn’t use the internet, and her few hobbies were reading, gardening, and occasionally riding horses. Xiao Yuan always felt something was off, but she could never quite put her finger on what.

When that post appeared, Xiao Yuan suddenly had a revelation.

Zhao Xin really did lack a companion.

As Zhao Xin’s personal assistant, and with the manager explicitly forbidding her from going on gossip forums, Xiao Yuan registered a small alternate account and started chatting with that little fan.

By the end of the conversation, both were teary-eyed, feeling they had met too late, and the two-person thread was built up to hundreds of floors.

Now that Zhao Xin was reacting this way again, Xiao Yuan couldn’t help but think of the thread from a few days ago, and a mix of emotions swelled in her heart.

She was Zhao Xin’s die-hard fan, her employee, and even her friend. She didn’t want to see Zhao Xin unhappy, not at all.

“Oh, walking forward on South Plaza Road, the night market area recently has a lot of street performers. The atmosphere will be even better with the snow today. Boss, do you want to take a look?”

Xiao Yuan tried her best to appear like she “super desperately wanted to go.” Although Zhao Xin seemed difficult to approach, she generally wouldn’t refuse requests that weren’t too excessive.

“Please, Driver Li, take the night market route later.”

She agreed! Xiao Yuan cheered inside. She was eager to see Zhao Xin look happy.

“Driver Li, could you go a little faster? We have an interview tomorrow morning!”

“Safety first in the snow.”

The driver listened to Zhao Xin’s opinion, so the car wasn’t moving very fast. Xiao Yuan looked outside; the LED screens of major malls and high-end office buildings were all displaying Zhao Xin’s endorsement campaigns.

No one would ever question Zhao Xin’s status in the entertainment and fashion circles again.

When the car passed South Plaza Road, Zhao Xin didn’t ask to stop. She asked the driver to circle the plaza once, scanning the billboard from every angle.

“The lighting is a bit dim.”

Xiao Yuan wrote it down in her notebook. “I’ll tell Teacher Wang when we get back.”

Zhao Xin said, “I will tell her. That’s not your job. Didn’t you want to go browse the night market?”

Xiao Yuan said, “I’m also a member of the studio! The Boss’s business is my business.” After saying this, she made a big mark next to the word “matchmaking” in her notes, then closed the notebook and urged the driver to hurry to the night market.

Because of the snow, there weren’t many stalls set up at the night market today. The ones left were mostly hot food stalls like roasted sweet potatoes and oden, which looked warm and cozy. Set against the snowy scene, they had a unique charm.

Xiao Yuan sprang out of the car and darted towards the roasted sweet potato stall. Zhao Xin followed her out. She put on her sunglasses and, seeing Xiao Yuan running quickly, reminded her, “Be careful, the road is slippery.”

“Got it! Boss!” Xiao Yuan responded while stopping to pick out sweet potatoes. Zhao Xin walked over. Xiao Yuan peeled a sweet potato and handed it to her. “Have a bite. Although the calories… uh, the calories are a bit high, an occasional bite is fine. If you don’t want to eat it, you can just warm your hands.”

Xiao Yuan knew Zhao Xin wouldn’t eat it. She had a strict schedule for work and meals, and after 8 PM, she wouldn’t even drink an extra sip of water. It was just that the sweet potatoes were small and round and smelled delicious, and Xiao Yuan hoped they could bring a little cheer to Zhao Xin.

Zhao Xin took the sweet potato and said, “Thank you.”

“Let’s go, let’s walk ahead.”

All along the way, Xiao Yuan racked her brains to try and amuse Zhao Xin. She got Zhao Xin a Snow White sugar sculpture and picked out a potted kumquat that was said to bear fruit next year. Seeing someone set up a stage by the roadside to perform an excerpt from Sulang Tanmu (a Peking Opera), Xiao Yuan pushed her way to the front of the crowd and asked loudly, “Boss, do you want to listen to a section?”

When she turned around, Zhao Xin was gone.

A cold sweat immediately broke out on Xiao Yuan. How could she have lost sight of her for a moment? She hurriedly pulled out her phone and called Zhao Xin. Hearing the connection go through, she finally breathed a sigh of relief. “You scared me to death! Where are you?”

“Walk forward. I’m at the intersection at the end of the road.”

Xiao Yuan hung up and ran towards the intersection.

Separated by only about fifty meters, the scene at the end of the road was completely different. This was also the night market, where women taught their children homework while tending their stalls, and young people stood guard over their phone-screen-covering stalls, shivering from the cold and stamping their feet.

They mostly had non-local accents, having come to B-City to make a living. The high rent and cost of living forced them to seek out small businesses at night to supplement their income. They couldn’t afford the night market stalls, so they had to set up here. Few passersby came this way, and few were willing to spend money on the cheap goods that could be found everywhere in wholesale markets.

The atmosphere here was frankly not good. Everyone’s eyes held the same confusion and despair. Xiao Yuan clutched her coat tightly, intent only on finding Zhao Xin quickly. She didn’t want this beautiful night to be infected by such gloom.

Just then, a cheerful voice broke the silence: “Beautiful lady, do you want to hear an original song or a cover? An original is fifteen yuan and comes with one VIP seat ticket to a concert. A cover is ten yuan and comes with one first-class seat ticket to a concert! You can choose the song; here’s the song list!”

Fifteen yuan? And it comes with a concert VIP ticket? A scalper? Xiao Yuan’s curiosity was piqued. When she walked over to look, her face instantly darkened.

Zhao Xin took the song list and carefully browsed it under the weak light. Standing opposite her was a tall girl who was cheerfully gnawing on a roasted sweet potato.

“Boss.”

“You’re here?” Zhao Xin turned and signaled Xiao Yuan to come over, then handed the song list to Xiao Yuan. “Is there a song you’d like to hear?”

Xiao Yuan was unhappy. “Why did you run off to listen to songs without saying a word? I was so worried.”

Zhao Xin said, “I thought you wanted to listen to the opera.”

Xiao Yuan said, “I thought you would want to listen.”

Zhao Xin’s hand, holding the song list, paused for a moment. Then she turned back to the girl and said, “Just sing whatever you like.”

She pulled Xiao Yuan to sit down on a long bench nearby and patted her shoulder. “If you don’t mind, keep me company and listen to some songs.”

The girl finished her sweet potato, wiped her mouth, and sat down. The guitar strings were plucked, and a clear sound rang out—

“In our village, we raise a flock of little ducks, Every morning, I drive them to the pond. The little ducks quack quack quack at me, Goodbye, little ducks, I’m going to school. Goodbye, little ducks, I’m going to school.”

Xiao Yuan: “…”

The song was a good song, and the voice was a good voice, but after all that, with such a long song list, she ended up singing “Little Ducks?”

Xiao Yuan felt she had been tricked. She jumped up and decisively gave the girl a thumbs-down with her action. “Can you pick another song to sing?”

The girl spread her hands, looking innocent. “This beautiful lady told me to sing whatever I wanted.”

Xiao Yuan turned and saw Zhao Xin stretching out her legs, her hands tucked into her coat pockets, and saying, “Not bad, keep singing.”

The girl grinned and flashed a V-sign at Xiao Yuan with a triumphant expression. Xiao Yuan was a softie. She was annoyed but couldn’t win the argument, so she sat back down and complained to Zhao Xin, “This is completely fooling people!”

“Is it? I think it’s quite interesting.”

“Interesting?” Xiao Yuan turned to look and was stunned. She seemed to see Zhao Xin’s mouth curve into a slight arc—she was smiling!

My heavens, she had exhausted her mind trying to make her boss happy, only to be defeated by a girl on the roadside singing “Little Ducks?”

Xiao Yuan was dumbfounded.

The girl played the guitar, singing from “Little Ducks” to “Doraemon,” and then from “Doraemon” to “Calabash Brothers.” After she had led Zhao Xin and Xiao Yuan through a trip down childhood memory lane, she stood up, dusting off her backside. “OK, I’m closing shop! If you want to listen, come back tomorrow.”

Xiao Yuan saw that it was getting late and stood up as well. “Calculate it, how much do I owe you?”

The girl pulled a piece of notepad paper from her pocket and scribbled something on it, without saying what. “Just… fifty.”

Xiao Yuan said, “You sang quite a few songs, only fifty?”

The girl handed the note to Xiao Yuan. “You two are my first audience since I came to B-City, so I have to give you a discount. Keep this ticket safe. If I ever get the chance to perform on stage, I hope you’ll come to support me.”

Xiao Yuan took the note and finally understood where the “scalper ticket” had come from. “This handmade ticket is really quite creative… Are you here in B-City to participate in Voice of the Heart?”

Voice of the Heart was a flagship program on B-City TV, branded as a grassroots talent show, and this was its fourth season. The immense star-making effect of the previous three seasons had caused singers nationwide to flock to it. For them, it was the most convenient path to stardom.

Zhao Xin’s studio had connections with B-City TV, so Xiao Yuan knew a lot of inside information about the program.

“Boss, what do you think about this situation…”

With Zhao Xin present, Xiao Yuan couldn’t say too much, but she also didn’t want to end this encounter with just a simple “good luck.” In the darkness, the girl’s eyes, full of hope, were simply too beautiful. Xiao Yuan couldn’t bear to shatter her dream, nor could she bear to see her be severely beaten by reality.

The number of girls who come to B-City to chase their dreams every year is countless. They work as models, showgirls, participate in various singing competitions, wake up early to compete for a role that can’t be more minor, and some even sacrifice their dignity to attend various banquets just to secure a foothold in the entertainment industry later on.

But in these past decades, among so many girls who have followed this path, how many Zhao Xins have emerged?