"Mom, could you lend me some money?"
Jiang Li tightened her grip on the phone. She took a deep breath before continuing, "I've run into some problems and might need some funds for a cash flow."
"You want to borrow money?" Zhou Ningyun repeated the words in shock. "What do you need the money for? Aren't you rich enough already?"
That's right. Everyone in Beicheng knew that Jiang Li was an artist of Jiang Entertainment.
And the boss of Jiang Entertainment was Xiao Yanzhi.
In other words, with Xiao Yanzhi as her financial backer, Jiang Li shouldn't have to worry about money or material things.
"I'm planning to terminate my contract with Jiang Entertainment. Before that, I need to pay off all the debts I owe the company. So I was wondering if you could..."
Before she could finish her sentence, Zhou Ningyun suddenly raised her voice, "Are you crazy? You're a big star. Why would you want to terminate your contract for no reason?"
"I've heard that many people are dying to sign a contract with Jiang Entertainment but have failed. You're giving up this glorious opportunity for no good reason. Aren't you being stupid?"
Jiang Li suddenly felt speechless.
Maybe in the eyes of outsiders, she was indeed glorious and carefree.
But she never thought that even her own mother would think so.
Holding the phone receiver, her voice was weak and pale, "Mom, I've actually been working very hard at Jiang Entertainment. I'm exhausted every day."
It wasn't just physical exhaustion but also mental fatigue.
"Who in this world has an easy life? You know that a second marriage means having to be submissive and live cautiously. I can't even say a word in their family."
When Zhou Ningyun mentioned this, her tone was inevitably tinged with sadness, as if she had no other choice.
Hearing how hard her mother's life was, Jiang Li felt a sharp pain in her heart. She murmured, "If you're not happy, why did you marry him?"
She had never understood why her mother could marry someone else right after her father's funeral without caring about other people's opinions.
She only left behind a mess and a younger brother, Jiang Yi, who was an adult but not mentally mature.
"Wasn't I afraid of dragging you and your brother down?"
Zhou Ningyun blurted out and casually found an excuse, "Without a man to support the family, this family would fall apart sooner or later. Isn't it great now? You only need to take care of your brother."
She talked earnestly, as if she was really thinking about Jiang Li.
Jiang Li closed her eyes. She calmly said, "It's not as good as you think. I owe Jiang Entertainment 30 million yuan."
"30 million yuan!" Zhou Ningyun exclaimed. Her voice became strange, "Jiang Li, when did you start spending money so extravagantly? The company isn't yours. Why did you spend so much money?"
Hearing her mother's unreasonable scolding, Jiang Li softly said, "Jiang Yi is addicted to gambling and owes a lot of debts. I paid off 30 million yuan for him."
Hearing this, Zhou Ningyun was stunned for a moment. Her voice became a bit weaker, and she was no longer as aggressive as before, "I see... As an older sister, it's only natural for you to help your younger brother."
Jiang Li's throat tightened, and even breathing became difficult, "Mom, what am I? Am I just a money - paying machine for Jiang Yi? Am I supposed to do all this?"
"Jiang Li, your words are really heart - breaking. He's your own younger brother!" Zhou Ningyun said with a trembling voice, "Do you want your brother to end up like your father, beaten to death? Will you be satisfied then?"
Hearing the scolding on the phone, Jiang Li's fingertips felt cold.
She lowered her eyes, and her fingers tightened. She didn't even notice that her nails were digging into her palm. All the words she wanted to say were stuck in her throat.
Actually, Jiang Li knew that Zhou Ningyun had always been partial.
Not only Zhou Ningyun but also her deceased father.
"Okay, okay. I won't talk to you anymore. The people in their family are coming back."
Zhou Ningyun obviously didn't want to continue talking to her. She covered the phone and quickly said, "Jiang Li, remember, as the older sister, you're like a mother. Jiang Yi is your own younger brother. It's your responsibility to take good care of him."
Holding the disconnected phone, Jiang Li's hand stiffened beside her ear.
Jiang Li closed her eyes with difficulty.
At this moment, she felt extremely isolated. The feeling of having no one behind her made her feel a heart - wrenching pain. Even the hand hanging by her side was shaking.
She comforted herself over and over again in her heart that it would pass, and everything would pass.
It would be okay after she got through it.
—
After resting at home for three days, Jiang Li had sorted out her emotions, and her body had recovered almost completely. When it was time to meet Sister Chen, she entered the filming crew on time.
Originally, the plan was to film for a whole day. But unfortunately, it started to rain in the afternoon. Several outdoor scenes couldn't be filmed anymore. The director had to announce a temporary break and continue filming the next day if the weather cleared up.
The winter rain in Beicheng was always fine and dense. The rain accompanied by the wind drifted into the umbrella and landed on people's faces, feeling cold.
Jiang Li politely thanked and said goodbye to the director. As soon as she left the filming crew, she noticed a very familiar Bentley parked in the rain, which was very eye - catching.
Jiang Li only paused for a second, then walked straight towards the nanny car parked on the other side without looking sideways, holding an umbrella.
But before she could take a few steps, someone got out of the car.
"Sister Jiang Li!"
Qin Yaoyao held a parasol and trotted all the way to block in front of her.
She took the initiative to greet Jiang Li, with a look of apology in her eyes, "I was too impulsive before. I know you didn't mean any harm to me. I'll remember that you're allergic to milk from now on!"
Her tone was very determined.
Jiang Li nodded, and her tone was very calm, "You don't need to remember. I'm not an important person."
This was the first time Jiang Li had been so obviously cold to her. Qin Yaoyao was stunned, and her eyes immediately became uneasy. She timidly glanced back at Xiao Yanzhi.
Xiao Yanzhi walked over. His face was as gloomy as ever, and there was impatience in his eyes, "After resting for a few days, you start throwing a tantrum?"
Qin Yaoyao immediately pulled on Xiao Yanzhi's sleeve, signaling him not to continue, "A Yan, don't make Sister Jiang Li angry anymore. She just got out of the hospital not long ago."
Xiao Yanzhi snorted but didn't say anything more.
Although the "A Yan" was called very softly, Jiang Li still heard it clearly.
"A Yan" was Xiao Yanzhi's nickname. Before, Jiang Li had heard his parents and a few friends call him that. She always thought it was a name only close people could use.
She never thought that in such a short time, Qin Yaoyao could call him that.
Jiang Li lowered her eyes. She was silent for a while before her voice came out from her throat, "What do you want from me?"
Hearing the coldness in her tone, Qin Yaoyao bit her lip and silently looked at Xiao Yanzhi.
Xiao Yanzhi slightly raised his eyebrows and looked at her, "Yaoyao just got the endorsement for Swee. She has no experience in shooting advertisements and isn't very familiar with the people there."