Chapter 3253 — Fifty Percent

"Wei Zhao... I don't know what I'm supposed to do with my life anymore. The whole point of becoming a star was to find my mother. Now that I've found her, is there any meaning left in carrying on as a star?" Xu Shilan hesitated for a long time, and at last, seizing the occasion of the recent events, she gave voice to what lay in her heart.

"Xiaohan, I understand how you feel." Wei Zhao was not much surprised; he smiled faintly and said, "Truth is, everyone starts out doing everything for a reason. Take me, for instance. When I first came to Songshan City, it was to protect Yaoyao. Later on, I was no longer Yaoyao's bodyguard, but we became good friends—and now she's my girlfriend. What I do now has long since gone beyond the scope of a job; it's simply become a way of life. And you should be the same. Sure, you've already achieved your goal of becoming a star, but think about it—if you stopped being one, what would you do then? You can't just stay cooped up at home every day, can you?"

Hearing Wei Zhao's words, Xu Shilan could not help but be taken aback, then she nodded. Yes—if she stopped being a star, what would she do?

"Actually, you still have a goal in life. Your next goal is to work hard and earn more money." Wei Zhao smiled. "Your mother has devoted her whole life to developing the orphanage. True, at first it was to find you, but now she has fallen in love with the work itself. Building her orphanage takes money. If you can do your part to help her, I'm sure the old director would be overjoyed."

"Yes!" At Wei Zhao's words, Xu Shilan's eyes lit up. She had never considered any of this before, but now that she thought about it, it was indeed so! Her mother needed a great deal of money, and the more successful her own career was, the more she would earn—and the more she could help shoulder her mother's burdens. In that moment, Xu Shilan found her life's purpose once more, and she was filled with gratitude toward Wei Zhao. "Thank you, Wei Zhao. You truly are the benefactor of my life... I'm so happy I met you! With you by my side, I feel truly blessed."

Xu Shilan's confession was exceedingly veiled, but everyone present understood it. Wei Zhao was no exception. He glanced at Wang Xinyan, then at Xiaoshu, and seeing no particular expression on either face, he secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

It seemed that Xiaoshu, burdened with her own cares, would not kick up a fuss and push anyone away as she once had. And Wang Xinyan—she had always been of that quiet, gentle nature; even if she had some small complaint in her heart, she would not voice it, but would silently accept it.

The only time she had ever put up a fight was over that business with Kang Jinglong. So it turned out that even the sweetest-tempered girl could have her rebellious moments.

"Then get ready. In a few days we'll set out for Europe." Wei Zhao nodded, looked toward Cheng Yiyi, and said, "Yiyi, you can come along too. I can help you open up the overseas market—but half of your earnings abroad must go to me as my fee."

Wei Zhao knew that Cheng Yiyi belonged to Feng Tianhu, and that her earnings all went to him. So he did not mince words, opening his mouth as wide as a lion's and demanding half of the fruits of her labor.

"Ah? Let me think about it..." Cheng Yiyi naturally knew that Wei Zhao was taking money from her to subsidize the orphanage, and in her heart she was all for it—she only feared Feng Tianhu would not agree! Giving money to Wei Zhao was better than giving it to Feng Tianhu in any case. She would have to talk it over with Feng Tianhu first.

Xu Shilan was taken aback. She had not expected Wei Zhao to extort money from Cheng Yiyi. She and Cheng Yiyi were as close as sisters, and she had never paid much attention to what Cheng Yiyi did with her earnings—she simply felt that Wei Zhao demanding half of the woman's income the moment he opened his mouth was a bit much.

But she could hardly say anything. After all, Wei Zhao had his own considerations, and without his connections and help, the two of them could never have opened the overseas market on their own.

After Cheng Yiyi returned to her room, she dialed Feng Tianhu's number.

"Yiyi, any news?" Feng Tianhu picked up quickly and asked.

"It's like this. Wei Zhao is going to Europe. He's going to see a friend, and his friend has a great deal of influence over there. He can persuade XXX Entertainment to collaborate with Xu Shilan, and even have Xu Shilan play the lead—make her a star," Cheng Yiyi said.

"Fuck, that little whore's got some luck—selling her cunt and she still lands a big backer like that!" Feng Tianhu cursed viciously, green with envy. He knew very well what kind of company XXX Entertainment was—a veritable kingdom for raking in money. If they really threw their weight behind Xu Shilan, her rise to fame would be only a matter of time.

At the same time, Feng Tianhu was somewhat shaken. Was Wei Zhao really just an ordinary independent cultivator? To actually wield such influence abroad? To be able to sway the decisions of such a massive company—he was certainly no ordinary man.

The thought left Feng Tianhu rather unwilling to accept it. He had hired the Black Horse Society to do a job, and not only had it failed, but he had wasted a hefty deposit for nothing. He was short of money right now, so he said to Cheng Yiyi, "Aren't you sleeping with Wei Zhao too? Hasn't he given you any benefits? Or are you just not as good as that bitch Xu Shilan at sucking up to him?"

"I haven't been with Wei Zhao for very long, after all. But thanks to my efforts, Wei Zhao did say he could have them promote me as well—only he wants to take fifty percent of my earnings as his fee," Cheng Yiyi said.

"Fifty percent, huh. That's a bit much, but if you can get even that much, it's not bad. All right, Cheng Yiyi—seems you didn't let Wei Zhao screw you for nothing. You've got some skill!" Feng Tianhu cheered up at once. That fifty percent was pure windfall; if Wei Zhao weren't backing Cheng Yiyi, she could never have collaborated with that company at all, and there would be no fifty percent to speak of. So he was delighted with this extra income.

Listening to Feng Tianhu's crude language, Cheng Yiyi frowned slightly and sighed inwardly. If only Wei Zhao really had slept with me, that would be something—but...

"So should I agree to him?" Cheng Yiyi asked.

"Agree, of course! Why not? Go agree right now. From now on, when good things come up, you can decide for yourself. If you keep coming back to discuss everything with me, Wei Zhao's going to get suspicious," Feng Tianhu said.

"All right, I understand." Cheng Yiyi nodded.