How can you become a star without money?

Chapter 7 No one is more law-abiding than me
When Wang Yao returned to the company, he found everyone doing a thorough cleaning.

"Mr. He, are some leaders coming to visit?" Wang Yao knocked on He Ming's office door.

The office was filled with smoke, which was quite pungent.

"Ah Yao is back so soon?" He Ming was somewhat surprised.

"I'm sorry, Mr. He, the other party said they need to think about it." Wang Yao looked apologetic.

"It's alright. I could tell yesterday that the old woman wasn't interested in signing. Let it go. We're not going to lose another good prospect." He Ming waved his hand to indicate that it wasn't a big deal.

“However, Auntie didn’t explicitly refuse, so there might still be a chance,” Wang Yao added.

“Okay, then follow up when you have time. Later, someone from Meishe will come to discuss the contract with Qu Shou. I’ll go pick them up first, and you can wait in the conference room.” He Ming handed over the contract.

"Okay." Wang Yao nodded and took the contract to the conference room.

A short while later, He Ming led three people into the conference room, exchanging pleasantries.

"Mr. Wu, let me introduce you. This is Wang Yao, our company's deputy manager," He Ming said, pointing to Wang Yao.

"Hello, Mr. Wu," Wang Yao greeted him.

This Mr. Wu is around forty years old, with a buzz cut and goatee. He has a distinct model aura and is probably a veteran male model.

He had no recollection of this Mr. Wu; they probably had no connection in their past lives.

"You're a promising young man. I've heard about you from headquarters. You achieved the top sales performance in the branch during your three-month internship. If Lao He hadn't already taken you away, I would have transferred you to Beijing. We're all family here. My name is Wu Tian, ​​but everyone calls me Brother Tian." Wu Tian's voice was hearty and bold, with a touch of江湖气 (jianghu, a kind of chivalrous spirit).

However, Wang Yao felt that this person was somewhat ruthless on the inside.

"Old He, your office is too small. Didn't President Xu invest more than five million in you? Why is it so shabby?" Wu Tian sat down casually and joked.

“This is a startup company, not as well-funded as your headquarters. We’re all hard-working people here,” He Ming replied sarcastically. “Tell me about the contract with Qu Shou, and the other two.”

"You've been acting all these years and you're still so effeminate. A few explicit photos and you're already scared?" Wu Tian scoffed. "We were able to cover up Tang Yan's affair, so what's this?"

"Whether I can suppress it or not is my problem, but what do you mean by not informing me in advance?" He Ming's expression was gloomy.

"Do you think everyone makes such a big deal out of nothing like you? If we were to deal with every little thing, wouldn't our thousands of models at headquarters be exhausted?" Wu Tian sneered.

"Qu Shou is no small-time model. You spent so much money to sign her with a fresh approach last year, why don't you manage her yourself?" He Ming said coldly.

Wu Tian frowned upon hearing this, glanced at Wang Yao sitting upright next to He Ming, and said in a deep voice, "Isn't it because you, Old He, are so capable? A good horse needs a discerning eye to unleash its potential. Who are you questioning?"

He Ming's lips twitched slightly upon hearing this.

“President Wu, President He is just trying to do things perfectly. After all, public opinion is like water; it can carry a boat but also capsize it. Any slight connection could trigger an uncontrollable chain reaction. President He just wants to grasp more details and do the job well,” Wang Yao suddenly said.

Logically speaking, Wang Yao had no right to speak up and help.

Although he was nominally the vice president, everyone present was a shrewd person and knew that he was just a figurehead. After all, no one would actually put a college graduate in any important position.

He Ming was also surprised that Wang Yao would suddenly speak up.

Wu Tian looked at Wang Yao with some surprise. The little boy's words were a bit too smooth. He then smiled and said...

“Ah Yao’s words make me understand. Old He, your biggest problem is that you don’t know how to speak. If you need to know the details, just say so.”

He Ming sneered, "You won't give it to me if I don't tell you?"

"Mr. Wu, would it be convenient for you to give us a detailed copy of Qu Shou and others' other contracts and personal information?" Wang Yao then asked.

Wu Tian's smiling gaze swept over Wang Yao's face, and he said with a smile, "Of course, I came here for this matter."

As soon as he finished speaking, Wu Tian's two men took out two stacks of documents, each as tall as a person, from their backpacks.

"These are all the contract attachments for Qu Shou and the other two that Meishe has retrieved, along with some other information. If you have time, please take a good look through them," Wu Tian said with a smile.

"Damn, so many." He Ming complained, then waved his hand. "A Yao, move these contracts to my office."

Wang Yao narrowed his eyes, understanding that He Ming wanted to get rid of him. He didn't say anything, picked up the contract, and left the conference room.

"This is the legal representative you chose? He seems quite clever," Wu Tian said with a light laugh after watching Wang Yao leave.

“Ayao is a very ambitious kid.” He Ming’s gloomy expression vanished in an instant. “You know, college students who are a little clever are the most willing to get things done.”

"This matter was personally thrown to you by President Xu, so don't mess it up," Wu Tian said in a low voice.

"Tell me the truth, what's going on here?" He Ming said in a deep voice.

"It's really unlucky. Qu Shou was doing quite well. This year she had already signed contracts for supporting roles in three movies and more than a dozen exhibitions. The company wanted to groom her to be the next Tang Yan."

As you know, we received a $5 million investment from Hafim Group, with a performance-based agreement. Meishe's revenue alone isn't enough to meet that target, which is why we selected a few promising talents and sent them into the industry this year.
A big-budget TV series starring Zheng Xiaolong was produced in Beijing; I think it was called something like "Empresses in the Palace." It starred Tang Yixin, Zhang Fan, and Qu Shou. However, Qu Shou's boyfriend caused a scene at the company, confronting General Manager Xu, and the two parted on bad terms.

Qu Shou then broke up with her boyfriend, which provoked the guy, resulting in Qu Shou being blacklisted. However, the contract had already been signed, so she could only try her luck.

"Damn, do they really think I'm some kind of vengeful spirit? What if something unexpected happens?" He Ming instantly pieced together the whole story.

He knew why Meishe invested in him, but he never expected that the first investment would be such a huge disaster.

"Don't worry, it won't explode. Qu Shou's boyfriend is a young man from Beijing with some influence, but it's limited. As long as Qu Shou can keep him in check, everything will be fine." Wu Tian shrugged.

"What if things don't hold up? Those photos were probably leaked by her boyfriend, right?" He Ming said in a deep voice.

"It doesn't matter if it can't be stabilized, since it wasn't you who handled it anyway." Wu Tian narrowed his eyes and grinned meaningfully.

"Old Wu, I really want to take Tianhuo to the next level," He Ming said in a deep voice.

“Old He, I support you, and the company supports you too. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have given Ma Ruo and Feng Jiao to you as well. Both of them have been on ‘If You Are the One,’ and with a little effort, they can be quite valuable,” Wu Tian said seriously.

"Are these two alright?" He Ming frowned. "These two are the ones you trained, and you're asking me?" Wu Tian rolled his eyes.

"Can I not have Qu Shou?" He Ming gritted his teeth, trying to persuade him.

"Old He, President Xu trusts and mentors us, we can't let him down. Running away from problems? That won't get you anywhere. As a person, you must know how to repay kindness."

"Besides, high risk brings high reward. This world is fair. If you can't do it, the company will send someone else." Wu Tian's expression suddenly turned serious.

He Ming remained silent.

"By the way, do you remember that Xiao Zhao you used to really like? I heard he broke up with Huayi. You can contact him if you're interested," Wu Tian started chatting casually.

"Ah Yao, you're still here."

After seeing Wu Tian and the others off, He Ming returned to his office and was taken aback when he saw Wang Yao flipping through contracts.

I never realized this kid was so dedicated to his work.

"Yes, I've categorized these contracts according to their risk level," Wang Yao said, standing up with a smile.

"Hold on for a moment, I need to talk to you about something." He Ming sat back in his office chair and lit a cigarette.

Wang Yao waited quietly for him to speak.

“This Qu Shou project does have some problems; it was shelved by Meishe and thrown here,” He Ming said.

Wang Yao frowned.

"Those photos you found were taken by her ex-boyfriend. I heard it was to stop her from pursuing the relationship further, afraid he wouldn't be able to control himself and would destroy her if he couldn't have her. Men are disgusting," He Ming said indignantly.

“That was indeed a bit despicable,” Wang Yao nodded.

"It's a pity to waste such a good talent. So, Yao, whether you're male or female, the most important thing is to focus on your career. Romantic relationships are just stumbling blocks in life," He Ming said earnestly.

"So, Mr. He, are we still going to sign Qu Shou's contract?" Wang Yao steered the conversation back on track.

“Since Wu Tian came to explain to me personally, I can’t refuse. They invested in us because they want us to help solve their problems, right?” He Ming stubbed out his cigarette.

“That’s natural.” Wang Yao nodded.

“We don’t need to waste our energy on Qu Shou. You can hire an agent, he doesn’t need to be experienced, just obedient, and give him this Qu Shou project,” He Ming said.

Wang Yao didn't expect that He Ming wouldn't let him take the blame, but instead brought in another unlucky guy.

It seems this guy has some conscience, but probably not much.

It may seem like the blame is being shifted to the intern, but in reality, if something really goes wrong, the blame will ultimately fall on him, the legal representative.

“Mr. He, since this is a project personally assigned by the head office, it might affect you if someone else handles it poorly. Why don’t I handle it myself?” Wang Yao went along with it.

"You?" He Ming was somewhat surprised.

I've already told Wang Yao that there are problems with this project, yet this kid is still willing to take the blame himself?

And it was to help himself?

"I'd also like to familiarize myself with the project process to help you out," Wang Yao said shyly, scratching his head.

“Ah Yao.” He Ming was deeply moved and didn’t know what to say for a moment.

Reason and emotion clashed for a moment, but reason ultimately prevailed.

Forget it, it's definitely more reassuring to entrust it to Wang Yao than to anyone else. Besides, Qu Shou's project might not necessarily fail.

We still need to give young people opportunities.

“Okay, then you can take charge for now. If there’s anything you don’t understand, remember to discuss it with me anytime. Normally, the revenue share for artist management projects is 10%, but I’ll give you 20%. Although this is a project that’s been shelved, it can still bring in a few thousand yuan every month.” He Ming nodded.

"You should also get involved in Ma Ruo and Feng Jiao's project. I'll lead and you can assist. I personally mentored these two people, and it can be added to your resume later."

On second thought, I realized it wasn't enough, so I gave some compensation.

"Thank you, Mr. He." Wang Yao feigned gratitude.

"Work hard, and I won't let you down. I'll get you a BMW this year," He Ming said solemnly.

He politely declined He Ming's invitation to have dinner together and went to the hotel to visit Zhang San with the contract.

Wang Yao paid for him for a week.

Ask him to help you screen for risks and mitigation options.

"The risk is huge. The consequences of these kinds of emotional disputes are unpredictable. In my experience, the photos that Qu Shou has released so far are definitely not all of them. If her boyfriend is trying to stop and control her, then he must have something powerful enough to destroy her." Zhang San shook his head after hearing the information relayed by Wang Yao.

The situation is not optimistic.

“But the more extreme something is, the bigger the problem becomes, right?” Wang Yao said expressionlessly.

“That’s right, but the bigger the deal, the higher the penalties for breaching these contracts will be,” Zhang San sighed.

“Actually, if the matter is big enough, the penalty for breach of contract can be turned into cash.” Wang Yao narrowed his eyes.

"You must abide by the law, young man," Zhang San frowned.

Wang Yao curled the corners of his mouth, his smile playful.

"Don't worry, no one is more law-abiding than me."

(End of this chapter)