The next day.
On the upper floors of Shen's Media Building, the office of the agent director, Chen Feng, was spacious and bright.
He scanned the draft contract spread out on the table with a sharp look in his eyes, exuding the shrewdness of a seasoned businessman.
Brother Wang stood in front of the desk, looking a bit grim, but still respectfully said, "Director Chen, Su Qianqian is really the most talented rookie I've seen in these years."
"Just look at that face, that figure, and her understanding of the roles..."
"Although she's still like a blank sheet of paper now, with a little polishing, she'll definitely make it big."
"This 50-50 split contract offers excellent terms for a rookie at her stage. It also shows the company's sincerity to her..."
"Sincerity?" A cold voice interrupted Brother Wang.
The office door was pushed open, and Lin Shu walked in gracefully, wearing ten - centimeter stiletto heels.
She was dressed in a champagne - colored form - fitting suit, with flawless makeup and stunning beauty.
She walked straight to Chen Feng's desk, leaned against the edge, glanced at Brother Wang, and finally fixed her eyes on Su Qianqian.
Su Qianqian was quietly sitting on the reception sofa a little further away, wearing a simple white dress with her long hair gently falling over her shoulders.
She lowered her head slightly, with her hands neatly placed on her knees, looking like a quiet Chinese ink painting.
Lin Shu's eyes lingered on her face for a few seconds, and the jealousy in her eyes almost overflowed.
She quickly shifted her gaze and, with a charming smile on her red lips, spoke in a forceful tone to Chen Feng:
"Brother Feng, I understand that Brother Wang is eager to discover talent.
"But this contract... isn't it a bit too generous?"
She pointed at the 50 - 50 split draft with her fingernails painted bright red. "A little rookie with no background, no works, and not even having completed systematic training gets a 50 - 50 split right from the start?"
"Are the company's resources free? Publicity, packaging, and the team all cost a fortune."
She paused for a moment, then continued in a sincere and persuasive tone as if truly concerned about the company: "Brother Feng, our Shen's isn't a charity.
"There are rules in this industry when it comes to promoting new talents.
"For someone like her..."
Lin Shu tilted her chin in Su Qianqian's direction, showing undisguised disdain. "She should sign the lowest - level contract, a 90 - 10 split with the company taking 90%. There should also be sky - high liquidated damages, and..."
She leaned forward slightly, getting closer to Chen Feng, and lowered her voice so that Su Qianqian couldn't hear clearly: "The company should have full control over which dramas she takes and what roles she plays."
"Only in this way can we have maximum control and prevent newbies from getting arrogant once they become successful and forgetting who made them famous. Brother Feng, am I right?"
Every word Lin Shu said was a direct attack.
A 90 - 10 split meant the company would take almost all the profits;
The sky - high liquidated damages would make it impossible for Su Qianqian to terminate the contract;
And having the company fully control her acting opportunities would completely strangle the artist's autonomy, turning her into a pure money - making tool.
Brother Wang's face darkened completely. He opened his mouth to refute but swallowed his words when he saw Chen Feng's thoughtful expression.
He knew that Lin Shu was the company's cash cow at the moment.
Her words carried a lot of weight.
Chen Feng looked at Su Qianqian.
The girl was still sitting quietly, with her long eyelashes drooping, hiding the emotions in her eyes. Only the slightly curled fingers on her knees revealed a hint of unease.
This kind of appearance was indeed easy to control.
Moreover, Lin Shu had the backing of Gu Chengyu, and he naturally didn't dare to offend her.
This girl's looks weren't the type the young master liked. Even if she managed to find another powerful backer in the future, it couldn't compare to the young master of the Gu family.
Although the artist contract was harsh, he would let Brother Wang take her under his wing, so she shouldn't be treated too badly.
He could avoid making an enemy of such a talented rookie while also appeasing the cash cow, Lin Shu.
"Lin Shu makes... sense," Chen Feng finally spoke, his voice calm.
"There are rules in this industry. Newbies should act like newbies."
He took out a contract with a 90 - 10 split and harsh terms and pushed it to the edge of the desk in Su Qianqian's direction.
"Miss Su, this is the standard rookie contract the company is offering you. It's in duplicate. Sign it, and the company will give you opportunities.
"If you don't sign, Shen's won't let a good talent like you go to waste. If you go to other companies..."
This was actually a veiled threat of blacklisting.
Brother Wang looked at Su Qianqian with a complex expression, filled with a bit of pity and apology.
The corners of Lin Shu's mouth curled up in a smug smile of victory.
She wanted to see how this little slut who got by on her looks would react to such a contract.
Anger? Resentment? Or simply give up?
Su Qianqian slowly raised her head.
There was no anger or grievance on her small face as Lin Shu had expected, only calmness.
She stood up and walked to the desk.
She glanced at the contract, looking at terms like "90 - 10 split", "liquidated damages of RMB 20 million in full", and "the company has the final interpretation and decision - making power over all acting activities".
In a soft and gentle voice, she said, "Thank you for the opportunity the company is giving me."
She picked up the pen on the table.
Then, with her eyelashes lowered, she carefully and slowly signed her name, "Su Qianqian", on that "indenture contract".
After signing, she gently pushed the contract back in front of Chen Feng, still with her head down, and said in a soft voice, "It's signed, Director Chen."
Chen Feng looked at the elegant signature on the contract and then at the overly quiet and beautiful girl in front of him. He felt a bit uneasy.
It was going too smoothly, so smoothly that it was... abnormal?
Lin Shu was extremely pleased to see Su Qianqian sign the contract.
It was done. This short - sighted little slut would now be at the company's mercy. She'd see how this girl could still act high and mighty in front of her.
Chen Feng suppressed his uneasiness and convinced himself that he was overthinking.
He put away the contract and resumed his formulaic smile. "Welcome to Shen's, Miss Su. Brother Wang will handle the follow - up matters with you. He'll be your agent."
Su Qianqian took one copy of the contract, bowed slightly, didn't look at anyone else, turned around, and quietly left the office.
Outside was the corridor of Shen's Media.
Su Qianqian stood in the bustling corridor and squinted her eyes slightly.
This contract... was really bad.
Extremely bad.
A 90 - 10 split, sky - high liquidated damages, and no autonomy...
It almost locked up all her future possibilities.
But...
Twenty million.
It was an astronomical figure that an ordinary person couldn't earn in several lifetimes.
But for that man...
In Su Qianqian's mind, she recalled the scene where Gu Chengyu was lazily reclined on the sofa, casually picking up a dazzling diamond bracelet and putting it on her wrist.
She later checked the price of that bracelet. Its auction price... was also more than twenty million?
The corners of her red lips curved into a faint smile.
This bit of grievance... was nothing.
Only by enduring enough grievance could she make that man feel enough pity for her, right?
Even, she also wanted to see that when he found out that Lin Shu was the mastermind behind all this, between her and his first love, who would he side with?
[Host, this contract is a trap!] The mechanical voice of System 007 rang in her mind.
[I know.] Su Qianqian responded softly in her heart and kept walking towards the elevator without pausing.
[It doesn't matter, 007.]
[Someone will pay for this grievance on my behalf. Moreover, it will be doubled.]
