Chapter 016: Lu Zi’ang’s Commercial Value

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Director Xu immediately grew irritated. What did “Red Bull” mean by that? They were turning their noses up at three million yuan—were they really treating Lu Zi’ang like some priceless treasure?

They were obviously taking a jab at him!

“We’re not tired at all, so you can forget the Red Bull.” Director Xu sat down in his chair and said bluntly, “Three million. Is it happening or not? Give me a definite answer. If not, we’ll leave. Your EDG may treat Lu Zi’ang like a treasure, but Shark Live is still the number-one streaming platform in the country. He can stream wherever he wants.”

Abu was not angry.

Instead, he intended to continue probing the other side’s bottom line. With a smile, he said, “That’s a bit too serious, isn’t it? Old Xu, three million for Lu Zi’ang really isn’t a low offer. Look at him—he’s just a rookie esports player. He has no fan base and no fame. Isn’t that right?”

Director Xu found Abu’s words rather agreeable.

From his perspective, acquiring Lu Zi’ang for three million was an extremely cost-effective deal.

On the way there, he had already conducted an in-depth study and discussion of Lu Zi’ang’s commercial value with his colleagues in the business department.

Lu Zi’ang was indeed worth little at the moment. He had no established fan base. But that did not mean he would not become hugely popular over the coming year.

For one thing, Lu Zi’ang’s appearance was astonishing—he was simply far too handsome.

He also possessed exceptional talent and skill. It was practically foreseeable that the moment he stepped onto the LPL stage, he would become one of the hottest new stars in the league.

And what kind of price would it take to sign an esports player at the height of his popularity? Without an eight-figure contract, there was no point even discussing it.

Just as Director Xu thought the deal was essentially settled, Abu suddenly changed direction.

“But do you know how our internal data analysts evaluated him?”

“The main reason Lu Zi’ang hasn’t made a name for himself in the LPL is that he wasn’t given enough opportunities at RNG. With his competitive ability, he is certain to shine on the stage within a year!”

“That is Lu Zi’ang’s value. To be precise, he can no longer even be considered a mere stock with potential, because data cannot be faked. That includes his performance in that one game at the World Championship. At present, he already enjoys a fairly good reputation among LPL viewers.”

“Three million is certainly not a small amount.”

“That price would be enough to sign the Lu Zi’ang of today, but if you want to sign the Lu Zi’ang of tomorrow, it is clearly not enough.”

Abu had made himself perfectly clear.

Director Xu’s expression shifted between bright and dark as he listened.

At that moment, his assistant tugged at his sleeve and leaned close to his ear, speaking in a voice only the two of them could hear.

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“Lu Zi’ang’s stream has already surpassed one hundred thousand followers, and the viewer retention rate has reached seventy-five percent. Female viewers account for thirty-nine percent of them.”

“By the time tonight’s stream ends, Lu Zi’ang’s follower count is guaranteed to exceed three hundred thousand.”

Director Xu had originally intended to leave, but those words made him suppress his displeasure and sit back down to continue negotiations.

The figure he cared about most was the thirty-nine percent share of female viewers. Shark Live was dominated by male users, but that was not necessarily a good thing for a platform.

Lu Zi’ang had the ability to attract female viewers. With proper promotion, he might significantly increase the platform’s overall proportion of female users.

After all, men and women were on entirely different levels when it came to spending power. That was also why, in the entertainment industry, male stars possessed far greater commercial value than female stars.

The user-retention figure was equally important. It indirectly demonstrated one thing: viewers liked watching Lu Zi’ang’s streams.

“Give me your bottom line.”

Director Xu spoke with great seriousness.

“As long as the price isn’t too outrageous, everything is negotiable. But I have to tell you one thing: looking at the entire streaming industry right now, we may well be the only platform capable of offering this kind of money. Once you miss this opportunity, there won’t be another one.”

At that moment, Lu Zi’ang was still playing match after match without pause. He wanted to reach Level 30 as quickly as possible so that he could officially begin playing ranked games.

It was already eleven o’clock at night. Since it was the weekend, traffic on the platform had not declined at all. On the contrary, with many major streamers going live, even people who did not usually watch streams had opened the Shark Live app.

The phenomenon-level streamer PDD, for instance, had also gone live that night. Ever since he started streaming, his popularity had remained firmly in first place.

In second place was Lu Zi’ang’s stream. The gap between their popularity figures was not particularly large, mainly because Shark Live had given Lu Zi’ang every possible recommendation.

Besides, Lu Zi’ang had already been at the center of attention these past two days, carrying plenty of built-in buzz. Otherwise, his popularity could never have reached such a terrifying level. By now, it had already surpassed eight million.

As for PDD, his popularity had exceeded ten million. He had not streamed for half a month, and countless viewers had missed him terribly. They were showering him with gifts at a frantic pace.

As usual, PDD’s content mainly consisted of keeping viewers company, playful banter, playing Landlord, and occasionally smurfing in mid- and high-tier matches.

“Teacher Piao, you’re about to get dethroned! A rookie just started streaming, and his popularity is already close to ten million.”

“Tonight’s viewers really aren’t putting in much effort. How can a rookie’s first stream be about to overtake the number-one streamer in the League of Legends section?”

“Come on, brothers! Send those gifts!”

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The moderators in PDD’s stream worked enthusiastically to stir up the viewers’ emotions. Expensive gifts flashed rapidly across the screen.

Rockets, super rockets, airplanes… All kinds of gifts filled the screen, dazzling the eye.

PDD had a massive fan base, including plenty of wealthy viewers. Most importantly, those people were willing to spend money sending him gifts.

“Huh? What’s going on? Did Shark Live sign some major internet celebrity recently? How come I haven’t heard anything about it?” PDD looked at the comments, puzzled.

His popularity on Shark Live was in a league of its own. Whenever he streamed, he would basically occupy first place. Even the platform’s top streamers found it difficult to surpass him.

And now it was a rookie’s debut stream. Still confused, PDD simply opened a webpage to investigate what kind of extraordinary person had come to stream on Shark Live.

“Hm? Isn’t that Zi’ang?”

PDD clicked into Lu Zi’ang’s stream. Seeing Lu Zi’ang concentrating on his match, he immediately began to laugh.

“We go way back.”

“Brothers and sisters, don’t panic. He’s one of ours.” PDD explained with a grin, unable to stop laughing. “It was probably about two years ago. Zi’ang even helped me, Mr. Liu, climb the rankings.”

As he spoke, he sent Lu Zi’ang ten super rockets.

“As an old friend, I have to show some support. Even though this kid turned down my invitation back then!”

The moment those words were spoken, the chat exploded. The viewers’ curiosity blazed fiercely.

“Holy crap, this guy’s story is that legendary? He even knows PDD? Holy crap!”

“Teacher Piao, tell us the whole story.”

“How exactly did he turn you down back then?”

“I really want to know what happened two years ago. This guy is definitely not ordinary.”

“RNG must be regretting it so badly their guts are green, right?”

“RNG has left the stream.”

…

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