A perfect life begins with changing the timeline.

Chapter 213 Getting What They Wanted

A ceiling that feels both familiar and strange.

And the familiar stomach discomfort, coupled with the even more familiar dizziness and headache...

No, I really can't pass.

Looking at his phone, which had only one bar of battery left, Li Mu sighed helplessly.

What happened last night?

do not know.

At least there wasn't a stranger sleeping next to me.

That alone is enough.

"Beep beep beep... Feed?"

"Fatty, where are you?"

"Well……"

Sui Kuan was also stunned for a moment, then said:

"You're awake? I'm going to take a shower, see you downstairs?"

"it is good."

So, the two people with wet hair met downstairs at the Sheraton just after 9 a.m.

Li Mu looked at Sui Kuan's swollen eyes and asked:

How were you last night?

"Damn it...it crashed."

"???"

Under Li Mu's surprised gaze, Sui Kuan shook his head speechlessly:

"I know where my weakness lies. It's in sake... I drink it like a beverage, and before I know it, I've had too much."

"Did we go drinking sake yesterday?"

"You didn't drink it."

Sui Kuan took out a cigarette from the crumpled Zhonghua cigarette box, lit it, and gagged in front of Li Mu:

"vomit……"

But ultimately, he couldn't bear to throw away this fine cigarette. After catching his breath a couple of times, he asked:

"Where's the car?"

"Over there... please finish your cigarette before you leave, I'm afraid I'll throw up."

"it is good."

Sui Kuan, with a cigarette dangling from his lips, said:

"You were feeling unwell right after dinner last night. Assistant Lin pushed you back to your hotel in a wheelchair. Chen Jinli arranged for me to go to a cigar club... That Feng Yuan can really drink! I made Jiang Lin throw up, but she seems perfectly fine."

"And then you got drunk?"

"I guess so. When we got to the club, we drank whiskey first, then brandy. Eventually, I couldn't drink anymore, so Feng Yuan suggested we drink something with a lower alcohol content to quench our thirst. We shared a big bottle of sake, and then a gust of wind blew in... and I completely forgot everything."

"..."

To be honest, Li Muguang could tell from Sui Pangzi's description that they had treated him well.

But the problem is...

That's terrifying!

There was a pound of baijiu (Chinese liquor) on the table, and from what I heard, he also drank some foreign liquor, and finally, he got some sake...

Who would drink like that?

Are you crazy?

"Oh right, this one."

Halfway through his cigarette, Fatty Sui took out a file from his briefcase that looked familiar to Li Mu, but he couldn't quite place it:

"Here you go, they gave it to you."

"What... uh, Huayi Brothers Media Corporation... Erguotou (Yongfeng)... Jingwangzi liquor. One million!?"

When Li Mu saw the contract amount, he was taken aback:

"What's this?"

"GG."

Sui Kuan, with a cigarette dangling from his lips, gestured to Li Mu with his eyes:

"Look below, there's more."

Li Mu subconsciously took away the three or four-page contract, and then saw another contract.

It's still Huayi Brothers Media, and it's still liquor, only this time it's changed from "Jing Prince Liquor" to "National Geographic Certification - Niulanshan Premium Erguotou".

The price is also one million.

The third contract was for a villa complex in Yanjing. It was a final draft, to be used once a month for a total of five times, and the price was 700,000 yuan.

However, this contract did not bear Huayi Brothers' official seal.

Next was the fourth one, from a leather shoe brand Li Mu had never heard of, priced at 400,000...

There are four contracts in total, and the total amount has exceeded three million.

"What...what's going on?"

"..."

Sui Kuan's expression was slightly complicated as he looked at the contract in Li Mu's hand and said:

"You drank too much yesterday, and Wang Jinghua handed me these contracts. I guess... I let it slip the day before yesterday that I told Chen Jinli our performance evaluations are now linked to GG (a type of liquor), and yesterday she brought over these contracts. You glanced at them and then handed them to me. She definitely meant they were for you... and Chen Jinli also specifically told me that Huayi is their GG supplier. But the two contracts without official seals mean the plans are finished, but the distribution locations haven't been decided yet. The South is definitely going to be distributed... The implication is that even if they're not stamped now, they'll definitely be stamped eventually."

"Does it mean... a gift for us?"

Li Mu was speechless.

But Sui Kuan still shook his head:

"To be precise, it's a gift for you. They would definitely want to talk to you about it, but you drank so much yesterday..."

"Understood."

"Shall we go?"

At this moment, Sui Kuan also finished smoking.

The two got into the car together.

Li Mu was driving, and Sui Kuan was in the passenger seat.

The contract was simply rolled up and placed in the central control compartment.

After the car drove out of the Sheraton, Sui Kuan's voice rang out:

"What were you thinking, guy?"

"Here you go."

Li Mu summed it up in one sentence, without any further ado.

But Sui Kuan's heart skipped a beat...

"Give them all to me?"

"Okay, you can have them all."

"But they came here specifically for you..."

"It's alright, I appreciate the favor. Besides, Brother Bie already said we should keep in touch with them more often; we're sure to get a lot of news. The reason they sent this contract is simply to do us a favor. Our business is already linked to theirs, so it's only natural for them to give us something in return. Just take it and use it. Moreover, with our circulation figures, they'll need to contact us for publicity anyway. So this contract is just a favor we're doing."

"...That's three or four hundred thousand."

Upon hearing Li Mu's words, Sui Kuan couldn't help but say:

"This is no small sum..."

"I know, but we talked about it before we came. I think this is risky, so I don't want to do it."

"..."

Sui Kuan frowned for no apparent reason.

This money... or rather, these contracts, for some reason, suddenly felt like a thorn in his side.

It's quite strange, really. Just two days ago, he was still thinking about the GG fee for the newly opened car wash and car maintenance shop.

And he estimated that if the deal went through, he could earn several thousand more dollars next month.

But... at this moment, with at least 300,000 yuan in commission right here, and even though Li Mu had clearly stated "I've given it to you, I don't want it," he suddenly felt something was wrong.

Saying it's not quite right isn't quite accurate. To be more precise...

This money... suddenly became a hot potato.

More than 300,000!

That's over 300,000!

It's so easily within my grasp, yet... why am I suddenly feeling uneasy?

Why?

He couldn't help but look at Li Mu.

Li Mu was driving.

Look straight ahead with both eyes.

There is no regret about "losing more than 300,000 yuan".

but……

Again!

Over 300,000!

To earn that much money, how many years and how many months of salary would it take?!

He... wasn't tempted?

Not tempted at all?

Why?

Why is this happening?

"Li Mu, can you tell me the truth?"

He couldn't help but ask.

"What?"

"It's this guy... why are you so resistant?"

He paused, his tone becoming profound:

"Did... something Brother Bie said to you?"

"Brother Bie?"

Li Mu glanced at him and shook his head:

"Brother Bie didn't say anything. We were both trained by him. Do you think that if these things were really his idea, he wouldn't have told you? Wouldn't he have told Brother Bin?"

"Then why are you so resistant?"

"Because it's an unspoken rule, fat guy, I've already told you why."

A hint of helplessness appeared on Li Mu's face.

I've already said all this, how come you still don't understand?

"Fatty, the reason unspoken rules are unspoken rules is because they can't be openly discussed. Why doesn't our company use a shared account for these kinds of guys? Why insist on a private account? And why is it always paid in cash? Have you thought about it? Why? Sure, in principle, it's not forbidden. But it's not forbidden because it hasn't truly crossed any lines! It's just an unspoken rule, understand? Do you know what the consequences will be once it crosses any lines?"

"I...don't know, do you?"

"I don't know either, but I understand one thing: going against principles usually doesn't end well. And if I think about it from another angle, the nature of this money... it's too easy to set the tone. Just like these contracts, they say it's a no-go... but if someone hands it to you, what's the difference between that and giving a gift? And why would Wong Jinghua, or Huayi Brothers, give us gifts? To put it bluntly, they need something from us. What do they need? To me, it's nothing more than a 'Four Little Flowers' (a TV series). Right?"

"……Um."

"Then you should think about it. Could these elements also be involved in Director Zhou's three million? And what about those higher up? The director, the editorial board member, even... the general manager? The deputy general manager? The unit is generating revenue, and this year's financial statements might even look very good. But how come something so profitable is just an unspoken rule instead of a principle?"

"..."

Now, Sui Kuan's brows furrowed completely.

"I can't gamble, Fatty. To put it bluntly, I have the backing of 9/11 news now, and on this path, I'm probably... having a much smoother time than you. But what if I accidentally twist my ankle and come to an end? Fatty... if it were you, wouldn't you regret it?"

"..."

That's all for now.

Li Mu said no more.

His phone rang; it was Wang Jinghua calling.

"Li Ji, are you awake yet?"

"Oh dear, Sister Hua... let's not do this again, okay?"

Li Mu immediately launched into a series of friendly complaints:

"Next time, could we... just have some tea and chat, or maybe when Fan Bingbing or Li Bingbing comes, we can all get together? Let's be civilized and do what cultured people should do, okay?"

"……Hahaha."

Instantly, Wang Jinghua's laughter turned hearty:

"I drank too much yesterday too. We're in the same boat!"

"The problem is that we didn't have to look for this disease ourselves."

"Haha, okay, then next time let's just drink tea... I really can't take it anymore."

"Yeah... Fan Bingbing is coming here to film in a couple of days, are you there, Sister Hua? I'll treat you, we can have some tea and snacks. How about that?"

"Sure."

"Okay, let's make this clear first, no alcohol. If I see any spicy food after I come in, I'll turn around and leave. Don't blame me for not giving you face, Sister Hua."

"Ha ha ha ha……"

Wang Jinghua laughed even more happily.

Clearly, she has achieved her goal.

The decision to produce "Four Little Actresses" is final and cannot be changed.

But it doesn't matter... she has already staked her future on the "new generation".

"By the way, Mr. Li, have you looked at those contracts?"

"Not yet, I just got up and am on my way to work. I'll check in a bit?"

"Okay, then we'll get in touch again later?"

OK.

In front of Sui Kuan, Li Mu made no attempt to hide anything. After hanging up the phone, he pointed to the contracts and said:

"You can take the contract in a bit."

However, despite being excited by Li Mu's statement, Sui Kuan showed no joy at all.

Instead, his brows furrowed even more deeply.