I was plotting against Hoshino Ai but was pushed back

"I'm the leader, and the method was thought up by me, so of course I'll be the one to negotiate with the president." Hoshino Aisho answered with the words he had prepared long ago.

"If you can really convince the president, then I will recognize your identities as the leader and center!" Member Gao Feng expressed his support when he saw Hoshino Ai take the initiative to assume the responsibility of captain.

"I agree with Gao Feng's statement." X2

The remaining two members also agreed.

"I'm very happy that you all support me to be the leader. Now I'll go find the president!" Hoshino Ai said to the members with a very happy smile on her face.

After she finished speaking, she headed to the president's office.

After Hoshino Ai left the dance practice studio, the four members of the group looked at each other.

Seeing the strange atmosphere, Akane Watanabe said, "Ai, if you can really convince the captain and achieve the ideal she said, you will all feel at ease to be friends with her, right?"

"Yeah." Gao Feng replied.

"I'm here to be an idol, not to engage in intrigue. If Ai is really as she says and allows us to both become the Center, what do I have to think? It's enough for me to concentrate on practicing." Ninomiya looked at Watanabe Akane.

"I also don't want everyone to resent Ai after the president announced that she would be the center..." group member Arisa said following Ninomiya's rhythm.

"As long as Ai can successfully convince the president, we can no longer play tricks. The members of the group must love each other." Akane Watanabe was happy to see that everyone else was rational.

While Hoshino Ai and the four members of the group were talking, Saito Hiko and the president came to the office.

"Aren't you going to give Ai an advance on her salary?" Saito Hiko took the lead and pointed at Saito Ichigo from a moral high ground, "You are her guardian now, but you don't even give her pocket money!"

"Pocket money?" The president was surprised by Saitohiko's statement: "I am just her nominal guardian..."

"You won't even give her a nominal guardianship? You're going too far! Not only did you employ child laborers, you didn't even pay her a salary, and even after you became her family member, you didn't care about her at all. Is there anyone like you? You are totally unqualified as a guardian!"

Saito Hiko continued to point fingers at the president from his moral high ground, "I feel ashamed for you."

"Haven't I just become the guardian of love for a short time? The company is so busy that I forgot..." The president was too guilty to dare to look at Saito Hiko.

He knew that Saito Hiko always had something to do every time he came to the company.

"You've only been a guardian for a short time? You handled the formalities on Sunday, and today is already Friday! How dare you say that?"

Saito Hiko mercilessly exposed the president's lies, "I've seen you slacking off in the practice room twice this week. You call this having no time?"

"Isn't that what I did? It makes it seem like an unforgivable crime in your mouth." The president retorted in a very low voice. After hearing what Saito Hiko said, he also felt that he was in the wrong.

"And then what? You knew that Hoshino Ai looked like a child from an orphanage, but you didn't care about her and let her feel the warmth of a family. Instead, you put all your attention on the agency. It hasn't been long since you found a new member! You must have spent a lot of time as a scout, right?"

Saito Hiko criticized the president without any hesitation.

He sympathized with Hoshino Ai's situation and liked her very much, so he spared no effort to make her feel the warmth of the relationship.

Hoshino Ai and the members will come over soon after they finish talking about things, so we have to end this matter quickly.

"Stop talking, little brat. It's just pocket money. I'll give it to you!" The president felt very uncomfortable listening to his twelve-year-old nephew lecturing him like an elder. He was ready to pay to solve the problem and make him shut up.

"I just want you to care about her. If you want to give her money, I'll pay for it." Saito Hiko felt that the president misunderstood his words. "Even if you want to give Ai pocket money, you can't give too much or too little. You need to give her a just right amount, otherwise it will hurt her self-esteem."

Chapter 39: Negotiation of Hoshino Ai

"..."

Saito Ichigo was choked speechless after hearing what Saito Hiko said.

"You decide how much pocket money to give me. Now put 20,000 yen in an envelope and write Hoshino Ai's name on the envelope." Saito Hiko said for a while, and when he felt that Hoshino Ai was coming over, he hurriedly urged her, "Hurry up! Ai is coming over soon! If she knew it was me who proposed it, she might feel uncomfortable."

Saito Hiko thought about what Hoshino Ai mentioned when she exploded yesterday. Although he only had a little sympathy at the beginning, she still saw through it.

When the president heard Saito Hiko say that, he had no choice but to find an envelope and a pen from the drawer, took out his wallet and stuffed three 10,000 yen bills into the envelope, and then began to write "Hoshino Ai" on one side of the envelope. He then said, "You little brat, you've made a mess of my job. The distribution of money should have been the responsibility of the finance department... Never mind... It's a good thing that you're taking the initiative. It's much better than before when you weren't interested in anything."

"When Ai comes over later, just tell her that this is an advance payment on your salary and don't talk nonsense," Saito Hiko arranged.

"Okay, okay..." The president looked at Saito Yan with his hands on the table and said, "Do you have anything else to arrange?"

"There are some arrangements, but the protagonist this time is Ai." Saito Hiko had already discussed the implementation plan with Hoshino Ai at school today. She first proposed it and communicated with the group members, then came to the president's office to propose the plan, and then he helped out.

"Really? It seems like you really like her. Ai has only joined for less than a week, but you're already trying to help her in every way possible." The president tapped the table with his fingers.

"Just don't talk nonsense." Saito Hiko warned the president.

"I really don't know what's going on in your head. You're only twelve years old..." Saito Ichigo seemed to have thought of something and continued, "You and Ai are only twelve years old. Don't make a big news and then need me to clean up the mess."

The president said meaningfully.

"Don't worry, it won't happen. I know what I'm doing." Saito Hiko replied.

"dong dong dong"

There was a knock on the office door.

"Please come in." The president sat up straight and assumed a serious posture.

"click"

The door was opened by Hoshino Ai.

"What's the matter?" the president asked directly.

"Ahem..." Saito Hiko coughed, trying to remind the president to give an advance on salary to Hoshino Ai.

This is about tomorrow's itinerary planning.

"It's like this... I think..." Hoshino Ai proposed the combination plan that she had discussed with Saito Hiko.

"No." The president refused without even thinking about it.

"Why?" Although Hoshino Ai already knew from the conversation deduced by Saito Hiko that the president would simply refuse, she still couldn't help but ask.

"You guys are messing around. Although Center will show it to other members during the performance, it's only a small part of the time." The president thought about it and felt that it would be too troublesome to explain, so he pointed out the problem first and said, "First of all, how do you solve the problem of lyrics and songs? And the most important thing is choreography and positioning. It's not as easy as you think."

"We can learn these by ourselves and solve them by ourselves." Hoshino Ai copied the answers that had been discussed.

"You are only 11 or 12 years old and haven't even learned any professional knowledge. It's too difficult for you to compose music and choreograph by yourself. If you ask others, they may not be able to do it, and you can hardly afford the price." The president once again refuted Hoshino Ai's statement, "You can't spend several years learning professional knowledge and then come back."

This answer is similar to what Yanjun guessed... and it's hard to refute.

Hoshino Ai had no choice but to say: "We can perform and study at the same time."

“After you perform, fans and audiences will get used to you being the center. Once you are replaced, they may think that there is something wrong with the company and feel unfair for you.” The president pointed out the problem again.

It’s the same as what Yanjun speculated... How annoying... But it’s okay.

Hoshino Ai took a deep breath and said, "At that time I can clarify that this is my wish and has nothing to do with the company. I know you still want to say that the fans will feel that I am threatened and feel even more unfair, but as long as we record the video during the rehearsal at the beginning, when we can complete the choreography and other things by ourselves, they will have nothing to say."

"It's a good idea, but I still don't want to agree to it. The risk is too great, and your energy will definitely be dispersed." The president shook his head and said, "The company signed you just to make you money, and doesn't have much time for you."

"We can then fund the concert ourselves!" Hoshino Ai looked at the president with a determined look, "If you really don't agree, then we can only use the worst possible method. And please don't say that I am the Center and as the biggest beneficiary, there is no need to take risks with them."

The president glared at Saito Hiko beside him. Hoshino Ai and those kids would never be able to think of such a reply.

If they want to work hard, they will give up after asking two or three questions.

"If you insist on doing this, you have to achieve results first." The president knew that even if he raised more questions, Saito Hiko would consider all aspects of the problem from the beginning, and asking too many questions would only make him feel annoyed.

"President, do you agree?" Hoshino Ai was puzzled by how easy it was to get permission. Saito Hiko also mentioned many situations and the possibility that the president might threaten to put her on ice.

"Well, I agree." The president picked up the envelope on the table and handed it to Hoshino Ai. "Considering your difficult life, I will advance you this month's salary."

"Huh?" Hoshino Ai was surprised. How could she get paid just for practicing?

"Just accept it." The president looked at Hoshino Ai, "I was planning to give it to you before, but I just forgot."

If Saito Hiko hadn't reminded him, it would have been difficult for him to think of giving Hoshino Ai an advance on her salary.

"I gave you an advance of 20,000 yen in salary." The president told Hoshino Ai the amount in the envelope, "Take a look."

"Since it was given to me personally by the president, there's no need to look at it." Hoshino Ai took the envelope and had no intention of opening it now.

"Just take it apart and see." Saito Hiko said.

"Since Yanjun has said so, I'll take a look."

Hoshino Ai was a little surprised. Saito Hiko had not mentioned this situation, but he asked her to open the envelope now. It felt like something happened here.

Thinking about this, she took out the banknotes from the envelope. They were three 2019 yen Fukuzawa Yukichi notes. (By the way, the person printed on the banknotes was changed to Shibusawa Eiichi on April 4, 9)

"Why are there three 10,000 yen bills here? President, you put too many." Hoshino Ai took out one and prepared to hand it to the president.

Chapter 40 Pocket Money

"I didn't give you much. This 10,000 yen is my pocket money for you." The president waved his hand and didn't take the bill. "That's why I asked you to open it now. Otherwise, you might feel uneasy when you open it when you go back."

"I can't accept it... The president has already taken good care of me, why should I ask for your pocket money?" Hoshino Ai refused.

"I am your guardian now, so I need to take care of you. However, I have neglected to take care of you these past few days. This 10,000 yen is also a gift I owe you out of guilt. Please accept it. Don't refuse it. Because I really don't have time to spend with you. This 10,000 yen can't actually do anything. Better clothes cost more than this price." The president persuaded Hoshino Ai to accept it. "If you don't accept it, I will have to go buy you a gift. Let me be lazy for a while."

"Love, just accept it. If you feel uneasy, let the group members get along. This way, the president can save a lot of energy to do things." Saito Hiko also advised, "If you don't accept it, the president will have to spend time choosing a gift for you."

"Since the president and Hiko-kun have said so, I will accept it. Thank you, President." Hoshino Ai originally wanted to refuse, but Saito Hiko persuaded her to accept it.

She was worried that if she didn't accept the gift from the president, the president would really go and pick the gift himself, just as they said.

If the president chooses the gift himself...it will definitely cost more than 10,000 yen.

"Okay, if you have nothing else to do, just go do what you need to do..." The president found some unprocessed documents from his desk and started reading them.

Hoshino Ai looked at Saito Hiko.

Saito Hiko noticed Hoshino Ai's gaze and felt that she had something to say to him, so he had to leave the office and wait for her outside.

Hoshino Ai folded the things she received and put them into the pocket of her skirt, then bowed slightly to the president before leaving.

"Is there anything you're concerned about?" Saito Hiko asked when he saw Hoshino Ai coming out.

"Hiko-kun, thank you." Hoshino Ai originally wanted to ask Saito Hiko something, but she forgot it when she got to the topic.

"No need to thank me. You negotiated for this from the president yourself." Saito Hiko gave all the credit for the persuasion to Hoshino Ai, hoping to make her more confident.

"Forget it, I'll go back and talk to Watanabe, Ninomiya and the others about this." Hoshino Ai didn't dwell on this matter and walked towards the dance studio.

"Since you still have to practice, I'll go back first." Saito Hiko looked at the place where Hoshino Ai walked to, then he also raised his leg and prepared to leave the company and go home first.

"Bye, see you tomorrow." Hoshino Ai waved goodbye to Saito Hiko.

"Remember to bring your property with you tomorrow," Saito Hiko said.

"Bring money? What for?" Hoshino Ai asked curiously.