Chapter 27: Juju Was Blacklisted

Meimei walked out of her supervisor’s office, crestfallen.

Her heart was set on becoming one of the editorial department’s top scouting editors, working hard to discover new streamers. But... an invisible hand was blocking her path.

’Isn’t Federation Live supposed to be the fairest streaming platform out there? Why would something like this happen?’

The supervisor had clearly said Jiang Qiuqiu had potential, but he still refused to sign her.

He wouldn’t give a reason for the rejection, but at this point, Meimei could pretty much figure it out.

Her suspicion was confirmed in the company breakroom. She had been spacing out in a quiet corner, wondering whether she should message Jiang Qiuqiu.

That’s when she heard familiar voices nearby. They weren’t bothering to keep their voices down, speaking so brazenly you’d think they wanted to be overheard.

"Why did that newbie look so down in the dumps today? She looked completely deflated."

"Tch. It’s because she’s too naive."

"Huh? What do you mean by that?"

The woman laughed for a moment before saying nonchalantly, "She picked a streamer who’s all talent and no luck. Ended up getting in the way of some big shot’s daughter."

"Doesn’t that mean she’ll be at the bottom of the rankings again for the year-end performance review?"

"Probably. But we’ll only have this year to gossip about her, you know~"

"How come?"

"If she ranks last one more time, it’s game over. She’ll be gone from the editorial department for good."

The two women erupted in gleeful laughter.

Meimei clenched her fists.

The office didn’t feel safe, so she took a short leave of absence and went home. From there, she placed a call to Jiang Qiuqiu.

But Jiang Qiuqiu didn’t answer.

She figured Jiang Qiuqiu was probably busy cooking, so she didn’t call again and just waited for a reply.

Around noon, the call came through.

A voice, even clearer than on the stream, came through the receiver. Meimei’s professional instincts immediately kicked in, and she couldn’t help but analyze it. ’So light and gentle. She could do bedtime streams. Paired with some children’s stories, that could definitely find a market.’

"Hello, is this Editor Meimei?"

"Yes, it is. Is this Jiang Jiujiu?"

"Why the sudden call? Is something wrong?"

It was a long story, and Meimei fell silent for a moment. On the other end of the line, Jiang Qiuqiu’s heart sank. "Is there a problem with the contract?" she asked.

"...Yes."

"From the sound of your voice, it’s not just about the revenue share being non-negotiable."

"I... you might not be able to sign with the Federation Live platform."

Jiang Qiuqiu noticed the editor hadn’t said, "you can’t sign with *me*," but rather, "you can’t sign with the *platform*." "So," she asked, "what happened?"

Meimei explained the whole story about offending the "young miss." "It seems you got in the way of one of your contemporaries. She has blacklisted you within the editorial department."

’Blacklisted? She was being blacklisted by someone she’d never even heard of?’

And that person’s influence was clearly immense.

Meimei had thought that even if she lost Jiang Qiuqiu, she could find another way for her. Her plan was to get her a more powerful editor. She contacted a senior from her university, who was now a very influential editor at the platform, hoping she would take Jiang Qiuqiu under her wing.

But after pulling up the file, her senior flatly refused, saying only, "It’s a shame about this streamer."

Clearly, this "young miss" was no ordinary noble.

’Not some minor noble. Someone with that kind of reach had to be from one of the foremost noble families.’

Meimei was just an ordinary interstellar citizen. She had no way to stand up to a noble like that. All she could do was yield.

She urged Jiang Qiuqiu to do the same. "A noble has made their move. You can’t stay on this platform anymore."

The words were like a final verdict.

After the call ended, a chill settled over Jiang Qiuqiu for a long moment.

But soon enough, her fighting spirit returned. ’All roads lead to Rome,’ she thought. ’If this one is a dead end, I’ll just find another.’

’Fine, I’ll switch! Federation Live is too high and mighty for me, I’m not worthy! On to the next one!’