Chapter 5

Thank you to the little angels who donated nutrient solution: binghao, 10 bottles;

Thank you all so much for your support. I'll keep working hard!

Chapter 5

"What did you say?" A miserable howl rang out from the top-floor conference room of Canghai Media's headquarters. Yan Donglin, who had been holding a meeting with his employees, had no idea whose call he had taken, but his face visibly drained of color. Before everyone's eyes, he broke out in a cold sweat and pleaded with the person on the other end, "My ancestor, I just said it casually. Can't you just take it casually? Why did you take it seriously? Do you really want to see your mom beat me to death?"

"In the business world, a contract is a contract." Wenren Yan, on the other end of the call, sounded quite pleased. "You know I'm a man of my word. Since I signed the contract—regardless of the circumstances under which it was signed—as long as it is legally binding, I'm willing to honor it."

"I don't need you to honor it anymore." Yan Donglin was frantic, his voice beginning to warp with anxiety. If the old man, his sister, and his brother-in-law found out that he had tricked the only son and first-in-line heir of the Wenren Group chairman—the most beloved grandson of the Guangchuan Group chairman—into becoming an actor, then the one facing a violent storm certainly would not be Wenren Yan, who had always been so clever, obedient, and outstanding in the elders' eyes that every peer hated him enough to grind their teeth.

"Just consider it a favor, okay?" Yan Donglin waved impatiently, shooing away the employees in the conference room, who appeared prim and proper but were actually all craning their ears and widening their eyes to eavesdrop on the gossip. He lowered his voice and begged Wenren Yan, "I don't need your investment anymore. Let's let this go. Pretend none of it ever happened. Okay?"

"Only heaven, earth, you, and I know." Wenren Yan spoke leisurely. "Besides, I've already handed over my current work to Steven and Jack. I saw that your contract says I need to stay with the production for three months. Don't worry. I'll do my best to cooperate with the crew's schedule during those three months."

"However, considering the feelings of the Wenren Group and my mother, I can't show my face in this drama."

Yan Donglin felt his head buzz. "What actor appears in a TV drama without showing his face? Are you kidding me?"

"That's your problem." Wenren Yan was in an excellent mood, the corners of his lips curling upward. "In any case, I'll fulfill the contract. Please handle it."

Yan Donglin's head felt twice its usual size. "Can I just not use you? I don't need you! I don't need you! Let's forget this ever happened!"

"You want to breach the contract?" Wenren Yan raised a brow calmly. "Of course you can. According to the contract, the breaching party needs to pay compensation. How much was it again?"

Wenren Yan pretended to think for a moment before saying, "One hundred million. Transfer one hundred million to my account, and this collaboration can be canceled."

Yan Donglin was so furious he nearly flipped the table. If he could come up with one hundred million in cash, would he be in such a pathetic state? Would he have painstakingly risked getting beaten senseless by the old man and his sister just to get Wenren Yan drunk and make him sign that actor's contract?

"Stop messing with me!" Yan Donglin grabbed at his hair in exasperation. "I know I was wrong! I shouldn't have betrayed your trust by getting you drunk and making you sign that goddamn actor's contract. I'm apologizing. What exactly do you want from me?"

"Fulfill the contract." Wenren Yan continued as if he had not heard him. "I saw the contract says the production starts filming on May 15, but all actors need to join the crew three days early for a script read-through, right? Send me the address of the hotel you booked. Remember, I want the presidential suite."

"No, I—hello... hello..." Yan Donglin glared angrily at the disconnected call. For a moment, he felt every inch of skin and flesh on his body ache faintly.

"I knew you shouldn't tug a tiger's tail. Why the hell did my brain short-circuit and make me provoke that brat?" Yan Donglin wanted nothing more than to slap himself. This was what it meant to lose the chicken and the rice used to lure it. Not only had he failed to secure an investment of one hundred million, he had even invited an ancestor onto the production crew. Wenren Yan had it easy, but how was he supposed to explain this to the old man, his sister, and his brother-in-law?

—Sorry, I dragged the heir you all thought so highly of into acting. As the second male lead in a historical xianxia idol drama, no less. Aren't I amazing? Please cheer for me!

The more Yan Donglin thought about it, the more he felt like a complete idiot. And cheer for him? If the old man and his sister heard such brain-dead remarks, he would be lucky if Yan Donglin did not get beaten into rice cake!

After stewing in frustration for ages and still having no idea how to clean up his own mess, Yan Donglin called the production coordinator for Immortal-Demon Duel and immediately unleashed a torrent of abuse. "I told you to pick an auspicious day to start filming! You picked May 15 after all that choosing! What kind of crappy day is that? Five-one-five sounds like 'I want to cry'! You didn't even know to avoid such an unlucky number? I'm telling you, if this drama flops because of that, I'll make sure you cry so hard you can't even find the tune!"

The production coordinator, who had been inexplicably scolded, carefully explained, "Well... wasn't this the date you specifically had an eminent monk calculate, Boss...?"

That only made Yan Donglin angrier. "What do you mean by that? Are you saying this is my fault? Yes, I had the date calculated by an eminent monk. But why didn't you try to talk me out of it at the time? What did I hire all of you for? To eat for free?"

After venting his misplaced rage, Yan Donglin hung up viciously. The production coordinator was left alone, clutching the phone that beeped with disconnection, utterly bewildered and trembling with fear. He had no idea whether they still needed to change the filming start date!

Change it or not, it could no longer stop the beating that was about to come!

That evening, Yan Donglin went home to attend the family gathering with a heavy heart. Sure enough, he was met by several furious faces.

Yan Donglin immediately lost his nerve and hurried to confess. "I didn't force A-Yan to act. I just mentioned it. I really only wanted A-Yan to invest some money in my drama."

The more Yan Donglin spoke, the more aggrieved he became. "Who knew A-Yan would turn the tables on me!"

Now the investment was gone! He even had to pay Wenren Yan's salary on top of that! And he still had to endure the old man's and his sister's thunderous fury! He was the most miserable one here, okay!

"Nonsense!" Yan Guangchuan looked at his youngest son with disappointment. "How many times have I told you? Business is not a game. If you wanted investment or sponsorship, why couldn't you openly discuss a partnership with A-Yan? Instead, you came up with such a stupid idea as getting A-Yan drunk and making him sign a contract. With your attitude toward business, how can I possibly trust you with Guangchuan Group in the future?"