"Don't worry. Just leave it to us," Mu Junze and Meng Nianchu assured Ju Zisheng.
"Sigh, then I'll thank you two. Alas, I've even troubled you. I'm really... such a jerk," Ju Zisheng said self - reproachfully.
"I won't allow you to say that!" Mu Junze interrupted him. "My friends are neither cowards nor jerks. You just loved too deeply, which clouded your judgment. You'll recover in a while."
"Okay, then what should I do now?" Ju Zisheng asked.
"Now, you can either go back to work properly or go home and have a good rest. Then start working hard again tomorrow. Got it?"
"Okay, then I'll just wait for the news."
"Right. Just wait for our news. By then, we'll investigate this matter thoroughly, tell you everything in detail, and then find a way to create an opportunity for you to meet Bai Ling and clear things up."
"Great. Thank you two. Then I'll go back first."
"Come on. Look at what time it is. Sit for a while longer. We'll go out for dinner tonight and have a couple of drinks with you to ease your mood. How about that?"
"No, that's too embarrassing," Ju Zisheng declined. "I've already troubled you a lot just by coming to you. If you invite me to dinner, it would really be... really too..." Ju Zisheng stammered at this point.
"Too what?" Meng Nianchu asked.
"Too shameless," Ju Zisheng said, his face flushing red all of a sudden.
Mu Junze and Meng Nianchu found Ju Zisheng's reaction extremely funny. But in order not to hurt his self - esteem, they didn't laugh out loud. They just held it in forcefully and coughed a few times.
"Cough, cough. Where's that kind of saying? Isn't it a delight to have friends come from afar?"
"Right. Just stay here. We'll have a good dinner tonight, and then I'll help you win Bai Ling back," Meng Nianchu promised, patting his chest.
"Okay then. I'm really troubling you."
"It's okay. Just sit there."
"Okay."
After Ju Zisheng agreed, he just sat there drinking coffee. Before long, Mu Junze arranged everything and took Meng Nianchu and Ju Zisheng out for dinner.
No one expected that after Ju Zisheng had a few drinks, his emotions completely broke down and he cried uncontrollably. The two of them spent the whole night coaxing him before they finally managed to calm him down.
That night, Ju Zisheng got dead drunk. He hadn't been that drunk for a long time because in the entertainment industry, if a celebrity got drunk and did something indecent that was photographed, it would have a significant impact on their reputation. So he always held back a bit when drinking and never got completely drunk. This time, he didn't care anymore and got so drunk that he couldn't even walk.
The two had no choice but to let Mu Junze call a few assistants to drive him back to his place.
At night, Mu Junze and Meng Nianchu discussed how to investigate this matter.
Mu Junze first said that he would arrange for someone to ask the paparazzi who had taken pictures of Bai Ling to find out where she had been, what she had done, who she had met, and what she had said.
"Okay. Since you're going to investigate the objective side, I'll investigate the subjective side. Tomorrow I'll invite Bai Ling out and have a good talk with her to find out what's really going on," Meng Nianchu said.
"Can you get her to come out if you invite her?" Mu Junze asked.
"Should be able to. We're good friends. Well, I'll give it a try. If she's willing to see me, it means there's still room for negotiation. If she won't even see me, it means she must have encountered something. Just a breakup in a relationship isn't enough for her to cut off all contact with us, right?"
"Yeah, makes sense. Okay, then we'll split up and try to sort this out for Ju Zisheng as soon as possible."
"Okay." Meng Nianchu agreed.
Back to Bai Ling. She had promised to give Zhang Hang an answer at night, and now it was already night. After much thought, she decided to pay the money. This matter had to be suppressed. She couldn't cause any more trouble for the company. Anyway, she could afford eight million. There was still ten million in her account. After taking out eight million, she would still have two million left. She could take on more acting jobs later and earn the money back quickly.
Having made up her mind, Bai Ling took out her phone and called Zhang Hang back after work.
"Hey, Miss Bai Ling. If you hadn't called back, I would have thought you weren't going to cooperate with us. I was just about to release the photos. So, have you made up your mind?"
"Don't be in a hurry. I've thought it over. I'll pay the eight million. You just tell them you didn't capture anything. Then we're even. How about that?"
"Well, your choice is a good one. But we've run into some unexpected situations. The other party has pressured us again and raised the price. Now eight million won't solve the problem."
"You! How can you go back on your word?" Bai Ling was a bit angry.
Actually, this was part of Lao Sun's plan. He thought that if Bai Ling was willing to pay the money, she probably wouldn't mind paying a bit more. To maximize his profit, he specifically arranged to raise the price when Bai Ling called back. If it succeeded, he would earn an extra sum. If it didn't, it didn't matter. Anyway, he could sell these photos for a good price.
"Sorry. It's not that we're going back on our word. The industry is changing too fast. It's really an industry change, so the price has to be adjusted," Zhang Hang said.
"How much?"
"For the solution you just mentioned about the breach of contract, we'll need twelve million."
"What?!" Bai Ling exclaimed in surprise.
"Right!" Zhang Hang replied. "The other party has raised the price. After your twelve million arrives, we'll completely suppress this matter and also tell others in the industry to try not to take pictures of you and Mr. Ju Zisheng. How about that? It's twelve million. No more price hikes. After getting the twelve million, you go your way and I'll go mine. Deal?"
Twelve million was really too much for Bai Ling. Even if she added up all the money in her account, there was only ten million.
"But have you ever thought about what if I don't have that much money?" Bai Ling asked.
"We don't care about that. If you don't have it, you can borrow it, or even rob or steal. Anyway, we won't stop until we get twelve million. You think about it."
Bai Ling gritted her teeth. She decided to go all out. It was just two million. She had so many friends. How could she not be able to raise it?
"Okay, I agree. It's twelve million. No more changes. Got it?"
"Great! So, get the money ready first. We'll notify you via email about how we'll conduct the transaction later."
"I hope you'll keep your word and stop bothering me."
"Don't worry!" Zhang Hang promised.
On his end of the phone, he was grinning from ear to ear.