"Sister Chen has gone ahead to negotiate on your behalf. I reckon she'll secure a pretty good deal for you," Xiao Ye said, her voice brimming with excitement.
After all, all of them relied on Jiang Li for their livelihood. If she could sign with a good agency, they would also have more stability.
Jiang Li had a good idea about this news.
As long as Chen Siqi set her mind to it, with her professional capabilities, she could definitely pull it off and get a decent package.
In a way, Chen Siqi and her company, Haiyin, were the only viable option.
In the current industry, the only one who could rival Xiao Yanzhi was Chen Siqi with Haiyin.
In other words, apart from Haiyin, no one else had the guts to take on Jiang Li after she left Jiang Entertainment.
The higher her status, the greater the risk of signing her.
Not every company could afford to support this beauty with ease.
Jiang Li was unaware of the recent upheaval in the Xiao family and thus didn't understand the current situation. She could only make judgments and analyses based on her experience.
"Sister Jiang Li, what's your take on this?" Seeing her deep in thought, Xiao Ye continued on her own, "Anyway, you'll still be in this industry after the contract termination. I think Young Master Chen is quite nice."
"Once you join Haiyin, they'll surely offer you good resources. A bird should choose a good tree to perch on," she said, dropping a proverb for once, which made Jiang Li chuckle.
If it were before, she would have thought the same as Xiao Ye.
Money had to be earned, and it didn't really matter where.
Chen Siqi had shown enough sincerity. If she refused him one or two more times, she would seem ungrateful.
All that would be left then was to negotiate the terms, which would be cleaner and simpler than her time at Jiang Entertainment.
But now, she was truly exhausted.
The exhaustion came from within, so overwhelming that her once - burning passion could no longer sustain her on this path.
"I'll think about it," she said, the weariness showing on her face as she revealed her true feelings. "There's no rush. Let's finish filming this drama first."
When she didn't want to face something or make a decision, she always liked to procrastinate.
Procrastination was a way of escape.
Xiao Ye sensed that her mood was off and thought she was just too tired from the dinner engagement. "I've run a hot bath for you. Go take a bath. We'll deal with the rest later."
Jiang Li forced a smile and nodded in agreement.
Let's put everything on hold for now.
We'll deal with it later.
---
In the pitch - black car, the man folded his arms, leaned back against the seat, and closed his eyes lightly. He looked relaxed, as if he had fallen into a deep sleep.
Lately, he had been so exhausted that he hardly got a good rest.
The Xiao family was in a complete mess. Even though he was quickly recalled, the fire had already burned half of the sky, and it would take time to put it out.
Xiao Yuanfeng was right to scold him. To play this game of chess, he had taken a huge risk by starting from within, which meant it would be a tough battle.
But he knew better than anyone that cleaning up from the outside wouldn't be enough.
The changes had to start from within to truly break down some deeply ingrained things.
Only in this way could he really get Xiao Yuanfeng to hand over his power.
Only then could he truly take charge of certain matters.
It had been raining in Beicheng for more than a day. The car was surrounded by a gentle drizzle, and the buildings outside were washed clean.
The usually dry Beicheng was rarely covered in such a misty haze, like a fairyland.
If Jiang Li were here, she would surely love it.
"Mr. Xiao, I need to report something to you," Xue An said while steering the wheel, addressing the man pretending to sleep in the back seat. "Sister Jiang Li's contract with Jiang Entertainment will expire in two months. Chen Yue has already submitted the contract termination procedure, and the process is underway."
The man seemed to be awakened by this sentence. He slowly lifted his eyelids, and his eyes were momentarily dazed.
His deep eyes were bloodshot, as he had hardly had time to rest properly.
He didn't respond but just lit a cigarette and lowered the window a bit.
The rain wasn't too heavy, but some raindrops still drifted in through the crack. "Go on," he said.
Xue An couldn't figure out his meaning and just continued bravely, "The contract is expiring, and the terms are reasonable. The legal department has no reason to reject it."
"Okay," he took a puff of his cigarette and slowly exhaled the smoke.
The car was soon filled with a haze of smoke, blurring his face and making it hard to read his emotions.
"I also heard a rumor that Chen Siqi has contacted Chen Yue and might be planning to sign Sister Jiang Li, but I'm not sure if it's true."
This was also within Xiao Yanzhi's expectations.
No one knew better than him how sought - after the little canary he had raised was.
Seeing that Xiao Yanzhi remained silent, Xue An couldn't fathom his attitude and tried to say some comforting words, like they should part on good terms and leave some leeway for future meetings.
At first, Xiao Yanzhi listened patiently, but later he got impatient. He bit on his cigarette and said in a cold voice, "She can't get away."
Xue An's heart skipped a beat and he fell silent immediately.
It was obvious that Xiao Yanzhi had no intention of letting Jiang Li go.
But why?
Putting aside the matter with Qin Yaoyao, given the current situation of the Xiao family, he shouldn't be distracted by other things.
Moreover, he had treated Jiang Li so badly before. Even if there was some affection between them, it should have been completely used up.
Jiang Li was a sentimental person, and Xiao Yanzhi had been kind to her.
If she wasn't pushed to the limit, she wouldn't have signed the contract termination so decisively.
According to his colleagues in the legal department, she didn't even hesitate when she signed.
It would be the best choice for them to part ways now. Why didn't Mr. Xiao want to let go?
Xue An was just a subordinate. He really couldn't figure out his boss's mind.
But he still summoned up the courage to say, "Mr. Xiao, you've had so many years of affection with Sister Jiang Li. Even if you part ways now, she'll surely remember your kindness in the future. There's no need to..."
He wanted to say there was no need to make it so ugly.
"There's no need for her to remember my kindness," Xiao Yanzhi said, raising the corner of his eye slightly with a hint of sarcasm in his eyes. "It would be better if she hated me, hated me so much that she wanted me dead."
Xue An was stunned.
Oh no, Mr. Xiao had gone crazy.
He didn't dare to interrupt anymore and just drove in silence.
Halfway through, he realized that Mr. Xiao hadn't given a destination.
"Let's go to Ruiyuan," the man said with his eyes closed, as if the previous conversation had never happened and he was detached from all this.
As the car turned a corner, the billboard still showed Jiang Li's previous endorsement photo.
She looked charming and alluring.
Xiao Yanzhi just glanced at it briefly, then lowered his head and smiled faintly.
She still owed him, and he had stirred up such a huge storm for her. How could he possibly let her escape?
Don't even think about running away, Jiang Li.
...