An Extraordinary Inside Story

"Manager Li, I'll transfer the liquidated damages to your company later..." The middle-aged man was one of Huayi's executives. Even though he was anxious, he remained calm. "I'm truly sorry I couldn't be of help."

Regarding the invitation for Tao Wanqing to endorse Mingzhu Company, although the contract hadn't been signed yet, Mingzhu Company had already paid a portion of the deposit.

Now that the collaboration wouldn't happen, they naturally had to pay some liquidated damages.

"Let's not talk about that now... I also bear some responsibility for this incident," Li Ruobing said softly. "Let Miss Tao recuperate well. If you need anything, remember to call me."

This wasn't a temporary excuse.

Huayi's boss and Li Ruobing had a good personal relationship, and Li Ruobing wouldn't haggle over the liquidated damages at a time like this.

"Manager Li..." The middle-aged man hesitated for a moment before saying in a low voice, "Actually, someone came to see me early this morning and asked me to cancel Miss Tao's endorsement collaboration with Mingzhu. I didn't agree."

Li Ruobing's body stiffened slightly.

"He came in a car from the Li Residence," the middle-aged man reminded her again.

Li Ruobing's eyebrows twitched slightly, and a hint of anger gradually rose in her eyes.

"Qin Lan's people?"

"That's all I can say," the middle-aged man waved his hand helplessly. "You just need to be aware of it."

"I understand." Li Ruobing took a deep breath. She now knew why Tao Wanqing had been in a car accident at such a critical moment. "Miss Tao's incident happened because of Mingzhu. All her expenses and losses will be borne by me."

The middle-aged man's words were very direct. Even if Li Ruobing were a fool, she would understand who did this.

Yesterday, Su Rui on the Board of Directors had turned the tide, buying the Absolute Controlling Stake for Li Ruobing with three million. Hu Guangyi was kicked out, and Qin Lan's plan to seize power through a puppet failed. Early this morning, people from the Li Residence had contacted Huayi Company, wanting them to terminate their cooperation with Mingzhu.

After being refused, Tao Wanqing had an accident on her way to Mingzhu Company.

This... couldn't possibly be a whole series of coincidences, could it?

This was not an accident at all; it was a meticulously planned attack!

Li Ruobing had thought that Qin Lan would resort to some underhanded tactics to prevent her from completing the agreement, but she hadn't expected her to be so ruthless!

And most importantly, she wasn't sure if Li Guodong was involved in this matter.

Was this something Qin Lan did on her own, or was she instructed by Li Guodong?

If it was the former, she could still accept it, but if it was the latter...

"Manager Li, I'm not saying this to shirk responsibility, nor am I asking you for money," the middle-aged man explained seriously. "I want to say that when we cooperated with you initially, we valued you as a person! It wasn't the background behind you, it wasn't the Li Family!"

"Huayi is your friend."

The middle-aged man said in a low voice, "I will contact an endorser for you again. Don't worry, the opening ceremony of the Qiantang New Store will definitely go perfectly for you!"

A subtle change appeared in Li Ruobing's expression.

But she remained silent for a moment, then raised her head and waved her hand, saying, "Uncle Wang, Huayi doesn't need to handle this matter. I'll do it myself."

Did Li Ruobing have better connections with celebrities than Huayi?

Not at all.

She just didn't want Huayi to bear the cruel consequences with her anymore. As Uncle Wang said, Huayi was Li Ruobing's friend, but precisely because of this, Li Ruobing couldn't let Huayi Company get involved in this big vortex.

No matter how good her personal relationship was with Huayi's executive, she couldn't bring it into business matters.

For one endorsement, Tao Wanqing was severely injured and couldn't get out of bed for several months, which was a bolt from the blue for a popular female star. The film and television company would also suffer huge losses as a result.

Huayi was not a deeply rooted large family business; it was also an outside company, and its influence in Tongzhou City could not compete with the Li Family at all.

On this matter, Huayi could show a tough attitude, but Li Ruobing couldn't accept his kindness.

Precisely because they were friends, friends couldn't screw over friends.

"Manager Li, don't feel psychologically burdened by this matter..." Uncle Wang frowned and wanted to continue saying something.

"Alright, do as I say on this matter, let's not discuss it further." Li Ruobing directly interrupted Manager Wang's words. "Uncle Wang, I still have something to do... Call me after Miss Tao wakes up, and I'll come see her."

Seeing that Li Ruobing had made up her mind, Uncle Wang could only nod.

Meanwhile, Su Rui, who had been sitting on the corridor chair without saying a word, stood up, glanced at Tao Wanqing in the intensive care unit, smiled, and asked, "Manager Wang, who arranges your company's artists' schedules?"

"..." Manager Wang was stunned for a moment and said, "For artists of Miss Tao's level, there are dedicated people responsible, usually jointly customized by the assistant and the company."

"Then when the car accident happened today, which car was Miss Tao's assistant in?" Su Rui asked.

"The car in front," Manager Wang subconsciously replied, then immediately reacted, his eyes widening in shock. "You mean..."

"Yes, why wasn't the assistant in the same car as the female star when she went out? And, from Huayi to Mingzhu Company, you can clearly get there by going straight through the main road in the city center, so why was the route where the accident happened in the slightly more remote suburbs?" Su Rui asked two rhetorical questions in a row, then smiled and looked at Manager Wang's face, saying, "Someone around Miss Tao is dirty, and they changed the route themselves after setting off... Can I assume that?"

Manager Wang's expression first showed thoughtfulness, then turned gloomy.

Earlier, when Tao Wanqing had the accident, his mind was occupied by panic. But now, hearing Su Rui's analysis, he immediately felt that things were subtly revealing something strange.

No matter how powerful the Li Family was, they couldn't monitor Tao Wanqing at all times.

Moreover, Tao Wanqing had deliberately disguised herself before going out today, so no one would recognize her. The only explanation was that someone around Tao Wanqing had leaked her whereabouts!

"Damn it..." Manager Wang secretly gritted his teeth, his breathing becoming heavy, and he pulled out his phone in front of Su Rui and Li Ruobing.

After a busy signal.

"The phone can't connect!" Manager Wang gritted his teeth and called another person in charge at the company.

This time, the call was answered very quickly.

"Hello, Ziteng, is Li Shan at the company?... No? After giving her statement at the police station, she said she wanted to go home and rest for a few days... Bullshit!" Manager Wang cursed crudely, fire about to shoot out of his eyes. "Listen to me, take a few people and quickly block her downstairs at her house, and have people guard the bus station and airport. Make sure Li Shan is kept in Tongzhou!"

"Damn it, this woman might be a spy! What happened to Little Tao was probably her and someone else working together!"