NOVEL WEB
Chapter 181
The words had barely left her lips when Alice sprang into action. Her movements were extremely swift and vicious, raining heavy blows upon the hesitating bodyguards' faces.
By the time those bodyguards recovered and tried to retaliate, Alice had already seized their fists in a firm grip before swiftly executing a smooth shoulder throw.
She fiercely punched one of the bodyguards in the face, leaving him in too much pain to utter a word.
Only after taking down the last bodyguard did she coldly withdraw her hands and walk over to stand behind Zhi Yao.
This act instantly intimidated He Kaiting and her manager, leaving them dumbfounded until Zhi Yao looked their way.
Zhi Yao whistled and waved He Kaiting over. It was only then that He Kaiting snapped out of her daze, though she eyed Zhi Yao warily. "You... what do you want?"
"I don't want anything, Miss He. I'm just giving you a warning. Today, I only beat up your bodyguards, but next time you dare to act impudent towards me, it might be your face that I pummel."
Zhi Yao spoke nonchalantly, but her words made He Kaiting extremely uncomfortable.
As He Kaiting was about to charge forward, her manager grabbed her arm and advised, "Those useless bodyguards are no help now. Next time, we'll take care of this insolent brat. Let's go and tell your grandmother, she can step in!"
She spoke in a low voice to He Kaiting, not realizing that Zhi Yao had overheard every word.
Zhi Yao couldn't help rolling her eyes. Mimicking the manager's manner, she began whispering to Older Brother Sun, "Older Brother Sun, don't only useless people go running to their grandmothers for backup? How laughable! Isn't He Kaiting almost thirty years old? Her grandmother must be at least eighty years old, and yet she still has to lean on her for support. What a filial granddaughter!"
Upon hearing this, Older Brother Sun burst out laughing.
The two of them were loud enough for He Kaiting to overhear their conversation, which infuriated her.
She glared at Zhi Yao and spat, "Zhi Yao! Just you wait! Don't think I won't touch you just because you have Pei Chiyao. You're nothing but Pei Chiyao's lackey. What right do you have to insult me?!"
It was only then that Zhi Yao looked He Kaiting squarely in the eye and replied, "Rest assured, I'm not as pathetic as you, needing others to stand up for me."
Then, patting Alice's shoulder, Zhi Yao said, "Alice! I'll pay you a salary from now on. You can count on me to support you when I act."
Alice smiled at her words.
He Kaiting was so enraged that she was practically jumping up and down, wishing she could kill Zhi Yao.
"I'm not doing it! I'm not doing it anymore!"
In a fit of anger, she quit on the spot.
Her manager was equally infuriated and publicly berated Zhi Yao at the film studio. "What's wrong with this studio? Letting every Tom, Dick and Harry in to make money in the entertainment industry? Nowadays, anyone can just waltz into showbiz, is that it?"
Instead of arguing with Zhi Yao, they decided to reason with the studio staff, relying on the He family's connections. He Kaiting had always been able to throw her weight around in the entertainment industry.
Whenever she threw a tantrum, even if everyone knew she was being unreasonable, people still had to coddle and placate her to get her to act.
But this time, when they expected the same treatment, no one at the studio budged.
Upon overhearing this, Zhi Yao's eyes lit up, and she eagerly rushed over. "If you're not going to do it, then I will! Whose advertisement is it? I'll take it."
Unaware of the industry norms, she didn't know that acting in commercials required signing contracts in advance, and changing actors last-minute would incur hefty penalties.
He Kaiting sneered, waiting to see Zhi Yao make a fool of herself. About three minutes later, the company executive in charge of hiring for the perfume commercial came out.
He Kaiting casually flicked her long hair, expecting the executive to publicly reject Zhi Yao. But to her surprise...
"Miss Zhi Yao, are... are you serious? Are you really willing to endorse our company's new product?"
Zhi Yao nodded briskly. She didn't even know what kind of advertisement it was, but she agreed anyway.
Her goal wasn't just to spite He Kaiting, but more importantly... she wanted to make money!
She had just boasted about paying Alice a salary, so of course, she had to work hard to earn money!
The executive was instantly overjoyed and flustered, for they had initially wanted to collaborate with Zhi Yao. Unfortunately, by the time they contacted Older Brother Sun, it was too late - Older Brother Sun informed them that Zhi Yao's schedule was full, so they had no choice but to settle for He Kaiting.
In other words, He Kaiting was merely a backup option.
But of course, this couldn't be said out loud, or that wealthy brat He Kaiting would hear it, and their company would be doomed.
"Please, come inside!" The executive stuttered. "Quick, quick, let's go discuss the filming process. And if you have any demands, feel free to let us know."
As Zhi Yao was about to follow them into the lounge, He Kaiting finally reached her boiling point and exploded.
She had been standing there for so long, and these people were treating her like air?
"Have you all lost your minds? I'm the one you hired as the endorser! Changing endorsers like this will cost you a fortune in penalties!" He Kaiting shouted.
Her eyes bulged, making her look like a terrifying ghost straight out of a horror movie.
"This..." The executive was at a loss.
Originally, the inspiration for this new perfume product was Zhi Yao herself, so having her as the endorser would be ideal.
But... He Kaiting's penalty fees were always exorbitant, and hardly anyone dared to breach her contracts.
Faced with this dilemma, the executive found himself in a difficult situation.
It was then that Older Brother Sun stepped forward.
He gave everyone an impassive look, then opened his phone's voice recorder and played the following: "I'm not doing it! I'm not doing it anymore!"
"I'm not doing it! I'm not doing it anymore!"
"I'm not doing it! I'm not doing it anymore!"
After playing the scene over and over, He Kaiting could no longer keep her composure. She forced herself to protest, "When I said I'm not filming, I meant I'm not filming today, not that I'm not cooperating at all! How dare you cut me off like this? Don't you have any shame?"
"Ugh, this is so infuriating," she fumed, stamping her feet in frustration, feeling like she could tear Zhi Yao limb from limb.
That wretched woman! She hadn't had any conflict with her, yet she was treating her so horribly? She hadn't even started to cause her trouble yet!