Chapter 91: The Beginning of the Scandal

Words : 1126 Updated : Sep 12th, 2025

Chapter 91: Chapter 91: The Beginning of the Scandal "Who’s there?" Zhou Lan turns and asks. "It’s me, Sister Lan," Zheng Xiaojue opens the door and enters, carrying two thermos containers. Zhou Lan looks at Zheng Xiaojue, somewhat surprised. "Didn’t I ask you to go home and rest? Why are you back again? And carrying two thermos containers?" "I made some food and stewed a soup," Zheng Xiaojue says with a shy face, "I brought them over for you." "How thoughtful," Zhou Yun chuckles. "You can cook?" Zheng Xiaojue looks at Zhou Yun excitedly, "Sister Xiao Yun, you’re awake!" "Yeah, I’m awake. Do I get some of that soup?" "Of course, of course," Zheng Xiaojue eagerly brings the thermos containers closer. "I didn’t know whether Sister Xiao Yun you were awake, so I made two portions." Zhou Lan smiles, "Smart girl." Zheng Xiaojue laughs awkwardly. "Sister Xiao Yun, Sister Lan, you eat first. I’ll head back now and come again at ten tonight." Zhou Yun asks, "You’re coming back at ten late at night for what?" "You need someone to stay with you," Zhou Lan explains. "I have a high-speed train at eleven tonight to meet someone for a talk, otherwise I would have stayed with you tonight." "It’s no need to trouble yourself, I can stay here alone overnight," Zhou Yun insists. "I feel fine, just need another check-up tomorrow." Zhou Lan firmly disagrees. "That won’t do; someone must stay here with you. What if paparazzi try to sneak in?" Zheng Xiaojue nods, adding, "Sister Xiao Yun, Sister Lan is right. It’s not urgent for me to come, and tomorrow you need to do a lot of tests. If Sister Lan isn’t here, I can help out." Reluctantly, Zhou Yun nods, "I really feel too embarrassed by this." "That’s okay," Zheng Xiaojue quickly responds. After Zheng Xiaojue leaves, Zhou Lan watches as she closes the door. "That girl is warm-hearted, even knowing to cook something for us, definitely better than takeout," Zhou Lan sighs. "Actually, with your current workload, having made the company so much money, you could ask for another assistant." "Oh?" "Let’s wait for now. Wait until you wrap up the shoot and then see if there’s a suitable candidate," Zhou Lan suggests. "It’s still not good to bring in two assistants at once; they might end up clashing." Zhou Yun adds, "This soup is turtle soup, right? Sister Lan, how much does Zheng Xiaojue earn a month?" "Three thousand." "Three thousand? Can she get by in Shanghai?" Zhou Yun asks, eyes wide. Zhou Lan glances at Zhou Yun, "She lives in the company dormitory, doesn’t pay rent, eats at the company cafeteria, has meal compensation when working outside, traveling expenses when she goes on business trips. Altogether, she nets about four to five thousand a month. For a girl without college education, she’s earning quite a bit. Many girls are scrambling for such a job." Zhou Yun realizes how naive she has been and just goes "Oh." "Besides, being an assistant to a celebrity, if she sticks with it, she’ll learn a lot, see a lot, accumulate a lot. All that is invisible personal improvement. Do you think she will be an assistant forever? If you’re willing, take the opportunity to train her, give her chances. This assistant job will form a solid foundation for any future endeavors," Zhou Lan explains. Zhou Yun laughs, "Sounds like someone’s heartfelt truth." "Whether it’s heartfelt or not, I’m speaking from my personal experience. I was an assistant too, though not for long," Zhou Lan shakes her head. "Not just an assistant, I have done marketing, planning, publicity, etc., been through the wringer, and that’s how I got the opportunity to be an agent." "You should get a good bonus this year, right?" Zhou Yun suddenly teases, "Having boosted me, such a hotshot celebrity." "Yes, a hotshot," Zhou Lan smiles. "That’s why I need to rush to Beijing overnight, to meet with someone early tomorrow for a collaboration." "What collaboration?" Zhou Yun asks. Zhou Lan replies, "Let’s not discuss it now. If it doesn’t go through, you’ll fret. Focus on your work, and I’ll handle mine." "Alright, I got it." "By the way, be careful with that girl Xu Siyao," Zhou Lan suddenly warns. "Xu Siyao?" Zhou Yun recalls, "Oh, the girl He Yong was dragging along, asking me to take care of her on set?" "Yeah, I heard she’s not an easy one, more cunning than you. The last time at the company, people saw her all over He Yong, almost clinging to him." Zhou Yun’s eyes widen in surprise, "Those two? Really?" "I don’t know; it’s all hearsay. But just be cautious," Zhou Lan suddenly slaps her thigh, "Speaking of which, there’s something I need to clear up with you." "What is it?" Zhou Yun wonders, what could be bothering Zhou Lan so much. Zhou Lan explains, "The accident today on the TV show was the production team’s fault for not ensuring safety. He Yong contacted me to handle your side while he interfaced with the station. He also asked me to post an update on your Weibo, but I declined since I didn’t have your password. The official company account posted a safety update. At that time, I had just brought you to the hospital for a check-up, I hadn’t spoken to the station yet. In the evening, I contacted the production team to discuss compensation. Guess what they said? They claimed they had already settled with our company, that they wouldn’t need to compensate us, as they had given the company several spots for our artists on upcoming shows! Only then did I find out that He Yong had used your incident to negotiate a beneficial partnership agreement with them!" After hearing this, Zhou Yun understands why Zhou Lan is so angry. She feels equally angry. "So, He Yong used my injury as a bargaining chip with the station?" Zhou Lan nods. Zhou Yun thinks it over, then asks, "Sister Lan, what do you think we should do now?" "I think you should hold your anger for now. Hold the front and you’ll have the back. What He Yong did secures more benefits for the company, and the group won’t complain, as he only sacrificed you." "We can’t just be sacrificed like that, can we? If I silently bear this loss, will future losses just keep increasing?" "It depends whether you truly don’t want to accept, or just make a show of it. He used this incident to gain bigger benefits, why can’t we use this opportunity to get something more meaningful for us? Honestly, I’m not invested in that compensation," Zhou Lan smiles. She knows what Zhou Yun will choose.

Chapter 91: The Beginning of the Scandal

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