Chapter Sixty-One: Unrealistic Notions?

“It’s not for that reason, nor because any other streaming platform tried to recruit me. There are other reasons.”

Such matters needed to be clarified—if people assumed he’d been poached by another platform, then Stardust would undoubtedly suppress him. For Luo Chen, who had just risen as a new virtuoso of the remix genre, that would be a devastating blow.

“Other reasons? Don’t tell me you just haven’t reached an agreement yet!” Han Yinglan sneered. What did he mean by ‘other reasons’? Was there any other possibility?

Thinking about it, Han Yinglan’s fleeting good impression of the young man before her vanished. No matter how talented someone was, if they were insatiably greedy, she could only feel disgust.

“I’m just dissatisfied with certain contract terms.”

Luo Chen realized Han Yinglan had misunderstood him. If things continued like this, she might just turn and leave. He had no intention of signing an exclusive contract, but he didn’t want Stardust to think he was about to jump ship, either.

“Terms?” Han Yinglan frowned. The platinum contract already offered the best terms for any streamer—what more could he want? This seemed unbelievably ungrateful.

“I intend to build my own personal website to stabilize my following, and may eventually upload all my work there, so…” Luo Chen hesitated but still revealed part of his plan—without a reason, she would never believe him.

“A personal website?”

Han Yinglan’s tightly knit brows gradually relaxed. Perhaps she had been mistaken after all. The youth before her didn’t seem naïve or easily fooled.

“If that’s the case, you can report it to the platform’s staff. Just state your reasons and delay posting videos on your personal website. As long as you stagger the release of your new works by a week or two, I believe the platform won’t object.”

Han Yinglan, realizing she’d probably misjudged him, patiently explained these nuances. Given the general manager’s appreciation for Luo Chen, such requests should be negotiable.

“As for Tianyi’s contract…” Luo Chen was quite tempted by Han Yinglan’s well-meant advice. If he could keep Stardust’s support while developing his own site, it would be ideal. Without redirecting his popularity from Stardust, the website’s growth would be slow indeed.

“Impossible!” Noticing Luo Chen’s growing ambitions, Han Yinglan’s face darkened. The platform was willing to make exceptions for him only because of his current and future value, a privilege not granted to everyone.

“Then I’m afraid there’s nothing more I can do.” Luo Chen knew exactly how much his sister was worth—and if Yanhe and Xinhua joined in, it wouldn’t be impossible to support the entire music section.

“You… you’re not planning to establish a streaming platform of your own, are you?” Realizing he had no intention of signing, Han Yinglan suddenly guessed his plan and was both exasperated and amused. Did this youth have any idea how much manpower, resources, and effort it took to build a major streaming platform? Even Stardust only reached its current status after twenty years—backed by Xingyu Entertainment at that.

“You’re just a high school student, aren’t you? Do you have that kind of backing, that much time and energy, that kind of money? Do the math—you’ll see how unrealistic it all is.”

Even if the youth could keep the website running thanks to his fans, how long could it last? After countless exhausting efforts, he’d find that years of hard work might not yield as much as streaming under Stardust’s generous terms.

After all, with a platinum contract, eighty percent of tips went to the streamer, and the platform only took twenty percent. That was still more profitable than operating a personal site for a hundred percent of the revenue.

Of course, Stardust wasn’t losing out either—the hidden benefits and the popularity of a platinum star were enough to justify it.

Facing Han Yinglan’s earnest persuasion, Luo Chen opened his mouth to argue but quickly swallowed his words. Could he really say he excelled at remixes, gaming, music, and streaming alike? That he had a trove of creative ideas and could amass a huge following in no time? Even if he said so, would she believe it? More likely, it would just become a joke.

So in the end, with Han Yinglan’s persistent questioning, Luo Chen could only fall back on the universal answer to express his determination.

“This is my dream!”

A dream?

Hearing this unassailable response, Han Yinglan, who had wanted to persuade him further, could only fall silent and slump helplessly onto the sofa. What more could she say? If a capable, well-off young man decided to pursue his dreams, what could possibly stop him?

For impulsive youths, only the pain of failure and the sobering lessons of reality would make them reconsider.

Han Yinglan admired young people with dreams, but seeing Luo Chen, who had such a bright future yet was determined to take a risk, she was left only with helplessness.

The industry was booming, and many capable companies wanted a share, but how many could truly survive and profit?

A teenager’s dream? It was nothing but an unrealistic fantasy.

After their lengthy, fruitless exchange, they parted on bad terms.

On the way home, Luo Chen pondered Han Yinglan’s words and felt an unshakable irritation. She wasn’t wrong.

But difficulty did not mean hopelessness.

“Luo Chen, are you planning to build your own platform?” Luo Tianyi turned to look at the troubled Luo Chen and asked.

“Yeah. Do you think it’s a bad idea?” Luo Chen had nothing to hide from her.

Thanks to Book Friend Germany’s Orthopedics, and to 'I Don’t Want a Breakup' for the 100 reward points. Throwing flowers here. Lastly, please recommend and bookmark!!!