Chapter 145: Exam Over, Contract Terminated

An invisible yet substantial magnetic field seemed to have formed between Chen Ziyan and He Yingzi.

Lu Yanhe and his two companions weren't fools. Given the current situation, it was clear that Chen Ziyan and He Yingzi were not on good terms.

At times like this, the three of them should just keep quiet.

He Yingzi glanced at the three young men, then her gaze fell on Lu Yanhe.

"Oh, it's you?" He Yingzi's eyes widened in surprise.

Lu Yanhe was surprised.

Why did He Yingzi react this way after seeing him?

He Yingzi turned to Chen Ziyan and said, "You acted quickly. It seems you've already picked the right person."

"It's none of your business." Chen Ziyan looked at the other person expressionlessly.

“Oh dear, why are you being so rude to old friends? Can’t you just catch up with them in a calm and peaceful manner?” He Yingzi immediately said, “You have no class.”

Chen Ziyan was too lazy to say another word.

Lu Yanhe thought Chen Ziyan was about to roll her eyes.

"Fine, since you're not willing to have a proper reminiscing, then see you later." He Yingzi shrugged indifferently and turned to leave.

"Sister Ziyan, who is that woman? Why is she so arrogant?" As soon as Li Zhibai and the others left, he couldn't contain his curiosity and asked.

Chen Ziyan said, "Chen Pinhe's agent is He Yingzi."

Chen Pinhe?!

The name stunned the three young people.

This is a very famous star. In his 20 years in the industry, he has won two prestigious awards: the Fei Hong Award for Best Actor and the Ling Yun Award for Best Actor. He is a member of the top tier of male actors in the 40 to 50 age group.

Li Zhibai toned down his attitude towards that woman somewhat.

"Uh, you two don't get along?"

“A nemesis.” Chen Ziyan said without hesitation, “You should be careful of this person in the future. She is ruthless and vicious. She won’t target you for the time being, but I heard that she is also preparing to train new people. If that’s the case, you will inevitably clash with her in the future.”

The three young men immediately became solemn and nodded.

Seeing Lu Yanhe sitting upright, Chen Ziyan laughed again and said, "It's okay, don't be too nervous. Neither I nor Zhou Ping'an are easy to bully. We won't let anyone bully you. I'm just telling you to be careful so you don't fall into their trap. This guy is shameless, he dares to say anything and do anything. He'll do anything to achieve his goals, and he doesn't care if he sleeps with you."

The group blushed and looked at Chen Ziyan, unsure of what to do.

Seeing their reaction, Chen Ziyan also laughed.

"Are you guys all still single dogs who've never been in a relationship?"

Li Zhibai immediately glared at him, "Who do you think you are!"

However, apart from him, Lu Yanhe and Yan Liang remained silent, and no one uttered a sound.

Seeing this, Chen Ziyan looked at them with some surprise.

The idea of ​​forbidding early relationships is no longer valid. Knowing these young people as she does now, it's impossible for them to suppress their restless hearts at the age of seventeen or eighteen.

Then, Chen Ziyan thought of the two people's special upbringing.

Not to mention Lu Yanhe, Yan Liang also entered the entertainment industry at the age of fifteen, and spent almost all his time on these things. Where would he have time to date? With an agent like Zhou Ping'an, how could he dare to date?

Chen Ziyan realized she had said the wrong thing and quickly stopped herself.

-

After dinner, everyone went home.

Chen Ziyan said goodbye to them in the parking lot.

She said to Lu Yanhe, "I estimate that as soon as your termination agreement takes effect, Zhou Ping'an will immediately ask you to move out of your current place. Do you have any plans for where you will live after that?"

Lu Yanhe shook his head: "I haven't thought about it yet. If I can't stay here now, I'll just rent a place outside for a couple of months. I'll be moving to the dormitory anyway."

Chen Ziyan said, "You'll be officially starting your career in the entertainment industry soon. It'll definitely be inconvenient to share an apartment with someone for a long time. I'll rent you a place near the school. For the next two months, you can share an apartment with Tu Song. After Tu Song is transferred to my team, I'll still arrange for him to stay in the same neighborhood you're currently living in. The company rents a lot of apartments here for the artists, so it'll be convenient for you and you won't have to go through too much trouble."

"Okay." Lu Yanhe nodded, which made him feel relieved.

Lu Yanhe's savings have finally exceeded 40,000 yuan. However, with university entrance fees and living expenses to come, Lu Yanhe still feels financially strained despite his savings.

Not having to pay for renting a place himself is the best thing for him right now; having to share a place with someone is a trivial matter.

"Take a good rest for the next two days. In three days, I will hire an acting coach for you to give you some intensive training. You have no acting experience and you will be joining the crew soon. It is impossible to start from scratch to build a foundation, but you can take the script and rehearse the scenes you will be filming in advance."

"good."

Chen Ziyan's arrangements for Lu Yanhe made Lu Yanhe feel quite at ease.

For an artist like him who had been neglected by his manager for three years, finally meeting a manager who started arranging schedules and work for him was like a child who had been wandering outside for a long time suddenly meeting an adult who was willing to take him in. Putting aside the sense of security he gained, the most important thing was the feeling of finally having someone to rely on.

Lu Yanhe wasn't someone who needed to rely on others to survive, but he never denied that he needed help. Moreover, in this unfamiliar territory, he had no one to rely on, and it was his luck to meet Chen Ziyan, someone who could guide him.

He and Chen Ziyan have known each other for more than half a year.

From the moment they met until now, Chen Ziyan has been incredibly caring towards him. For half a year, she hasn't talked to him about anything related to work. She would occasionally bring him food and drinks, and after each exam, she would come to ask him how it went. Every month, she would take him out for a meal and chat with him.

This way of getting along meant that Lu Yanhe and Chen Ziyan had become increasingly familiar with each other even before they had officially started working together.

Lu Yanhe is getting to know Chen Ziyan better and better.

Later, he even felt that Chen Ziyan did this on purpose, in order to get to know each other better.

-

Li Zhibai drove back.

As soon as Lu Yanhe got into the car, Li Zhibai immediately said, "Sister Ziyan is very charming. I thought she had a strong aura, but I didn't expect her to be so casual when eating with us. She has a really beautiful smile, like a cat."

Yan Liang said with a smile, "Li Zhibai, I've noticed that you seem to have a strong preference for older women like you."

"..." Li Zhibai immediately denied it, "What nonsense are you talking about?"

“Look, you like Officer Qiu, and you like Agent Chen too,” Yan Liang said.

Lu Yanhe himself hadn't realized it yet, but after hearing Yan Liang say that, he suddenly realized it too.

That's right!

Lu Yanhe's gossip-loving spirit was instantly activated.

"Li Zhibai, I never expected that someone with your seemingly volatile temper would actually prefer a more mature, older sister type."

Li Zhibai angrily denied it: "Bullshit, you two, don't talk nonsense."

Lu Yanhe and Yan Liang laughed.

"Old Lu, starting today, you've got a new agent," Yan Liang remarked.

From Zhou Ping'an to Chen Ziyan, Lu Yanhe has finally entered a new phase.

For Lu Yanhe, he only experienced the last year, but the previous years were also etched into his memory.

Nightfall rushed past, stepping on the shadow of midsummer.

At this moment, Lu Yanhe finally felt somewhat lost.

“However, on the other hand, what Sister Ziyan said is right. No matter what happens in the future, the three of us will always be brothers, you know?” Li Zhibai said.

"certainly."

Just then, Lu Yanhe's phone rang.

It was Zhou Pingan who called.

A phone call that was hardly unexpected.

Lu Yanhe looked at the three words "Zhou Ping'an" on his phone screen and sneered inwardly. He really couldn't wait even one night.

He answered the phone.

"Brother Ping An, why are you in such a hurry to find me?"

"Let's meet tomorrow," Zhou Ping'an said. "Things that need to be done will have to be done sooner or later; there's no need to drag it out."

"Okay, see you tomorrow morning then." Lu Yanhe didn't want to drag things out anyway. The sooner he ended his relationship with Zhou Ping'an, the sooner he could officially transfer to Chen Ziyan's department, to avoid any unforeseen complications.

Lu Yanhe hung up the phone, and neither Li Zhibai nor Yan Liang said anything.

"Is he pressuring you to terminate the contract?" Li Zhibai asked.

"Yes, they asked me to meet them tomorrow."

Why the rush?

"I just want things to settle down as soon as possible."

Li Zhibai suddenly smiled and said, "I wonder what his reaction will be when he finds out that you signed with Chen Ziyan. He went through so much trouble to terminate your contract, and now you've already signed a new one with the company."

Lu Yanhe said, "Who knows what he's thinking? It's none of my business."

This was the first time Lu Yanhe had mentioned Zhou Ping'an with such direct and disgusted attitude. It was also a rare instance for Lu Yanhe to utter a curse word that was hardly a profanity, but those familiar with Lu Yanhe could tell from it how much he loathed Zhou Ping'an.

Especially after Lu Yanhe met Chen Ziyan, Zhou Ping'an seemed even more like a piece of trash who did nothing right in comparison.

-

On the night the college entrance exam ended, Lu Yanhe, Li Zhibai, and Yan Liang went back and played a few games. Since Li Zhibai and Yan Liang both had work the next day and had to leave early, they had to go to bed early.

Lu Yanhe returned to his room, sat down in a chair, and his established biological clock made him feel no sleepiness at this moment.

He habitually opened his laptop, logged into the live streaming platform, but didn't know what to stream.

Live stream begins.

Looking at himself on the screen, Lu Yanhe seemed to have matured a little compared to a year ago, and no longer had so much of his uncontrollable naivety.

But he still looks like a teenager.

As the live stream began, many fans received a notification and clicked to join.

The comments section was very active.

—Have you finished the exam? How did it go?

—Can I get into Yuming or Zhenhua?

—I thought you weren't going to do a live stream tonight, why did you still come?

—Aren't we going to celebrate the end of the college entrance exam tonight? When I finished my exam, I partied with my classmates until dawn.

—Why does the host look a little off? Did he fail the exam?

Hahaha, will he finally show his true colors and not even be able to get into a third-tier university?

...

The comments section remains the same, with all sorts of opinions.

Lu Yanhe felt a little lost for a moment.

In his live stream, he spends most of his time with his head down, either reading, doing exercises, or organizing notes. It's rare for him to be idly staring at the screen and reading the comments; he seems to have a sense of desolation, not knowing what to do.

"He probably won't even be able to get into a third-tier university in the end." Although the comment only flashed by for a moment amidst the lively barrage of comments, it still caught his eye.

This finally pulled him out of his bewilderment.

"The exam is over," he said with a smile. "I did as I expected. I don't know how the final result will be, but it shouldn't be bad."

As soon as Lu Yanhe finished speaking, even more people started commenting in the live chat.

Many people are sending encouraging messages like "666666" or "Awesome".

There were still some people who were sarcastic and sarcastic.

Lu Yanhe ignored the sarcastic remarks. He had just made a point to reassure those who had been encouraging him, so they wouldn't be swayed by others and worry about his achievements.

"Well, although the college entrance exam is over, this live stream will continue, so please don't unfollow me." Lu Yanhe said with a smile, "I haven't figured out what I'll be doing in this live stream yet. I'll think about it seriously in the next few days. You can also tell me your thoughts in the comments."

At this moment, he saw "Beautiful Girl Lanlan" asking: The college entrance exam is over, and this summer vacation is very long. What are your plans? If you're going to travel, you can give us a live stream of the beautiful scenery and delicious food in the area.

Lu Yanhe explained, "Although I've finished the exam, I still have other work to do. I've taken on a role in a drama and I'll be filming it soon. I'll be attending acting training before joining the crew, so I probably won't have time to travel."

"Beautiful Girl Lanlan": Are you going to film a movie? What kind of movie is it?

"1122": Is he going to become an actor? It seems like all idols eventually become actors. These days, the ultimate goal for idols is to become actors.

"Lucky Turtle Girl": I'm speechless. Although I like you, why are people like you who have never acted or received professional training allowed to steal jobs from actors who graduated from professional schools? Can't you just stay and be your idols?

"Leo1998": You can't say that. There are idols who have successfully transitioned into acting. Lu Yanhe tried acting, but none of you have ever seen him act. How do you know he will fail like 99% of idols?

...

Lu Yanhe looked at the comments in the live chat with surprise, not expecting that his words would cause so many people to have negative opinions about the matter.

Idols going to act?

This is a very common phenomenon, but the audience doesn't buy it. The reason is simple, just like what these people in the barrage said: idols' acting is terrible nine times out of ten. Not only is it terrible, but they also contribute a lot of memorable scenes, such as losing control of their facial features and being possessed by evil spirits.

The sheer number of negative comments was indeed beyond Lu Yanhe's expectations.

Should we just turn a blind eye?

Lu Yanhe hesitated for a moment, wanting to pretend he hadn't seen the sounds, but these things don't just disappear on their own if you ignore them.

"Everyone, don't get too excited. I—" Lu Yanhe originally wanted to give a proper explanation, but at this moment he suddenly had a flash of inspiration. Why bother explaining? He could just tell the truth. "I'm not as famous as you all think or imagine. Not all idols are famous. I'm just a typical has-been idol. Why would anyone give me a role just because I'm an idol?"

The reason for such a negative reaction is that "because Lu Yanhe is an idol, he can get acting opportunities more easily than others, and idols who get acting opportunities under such circumstances usually give terrible performances."

Lu Yanhe's current response follows the logic that "although I am an idol, this identity does not add anything to me, and my ability to act has nothing to do with my identity as an idol."

After he said that, the negative comments in the live chat indeed decreased significantly.

But some people still question: If it weren't for your idol status, how did you get this opportunity to act?

At this moment, Lu Yanhe suddenly realized that the hundred-person audition that Zhou Pingan had arranged to sabotage his plans had now inadvertently become evidence to clear his name. He said, "The director came to our company to audition, and I got the opportunity through the audition."

After this incident, Lu Yanhe suddenly lost the will to continue his live stream.

He said, "I just finished my exam today, so I came up to tell everyone. Now that I'm done, I'm logging off. Bye."

—The broadcast ended so soon?

—Isn't this just the beginning?

—Hahaha, is your heart made of glass? So fragile?

—Could it be that they got angry because of our questioning?

Don't let these people's voices influence you.

...

Lu Yanhe saw these words quickly scrolling through the comments section, clicked the mouse, and confirmed that he was leaving the live stream.

Lu Yanhe had seen such a large number of negative comments in his live broadcast room before, but today's situation was different from the past.

Previously, most of the discussion focused on whether his studying was a persona he was creating, questioning his motives for doing the live stream, mainly questioning his intentions and purposes.

This time, however, people are questioning his abilities.

Acting ability.

Lu Yanhe himself was also thinking about something, and he was also a little unsure of himself: could he act well?

He knows very well that all the doubts about his purpose in studying and his attempt to cultivate a "top student" persona will disappear once his college entrance exam results are released.

But this time, he lacked the confidence to say that he would deliver an outstanding performance to silence those doubts.

-

On the night the college entrance exam ended, Lu Yanhe thought he would finally be free and relaxed, but because of this sudden incident, he lay in bed and couldn't fall asleep for a long time.

Ultimately, whatever it is, you have to truly have it in your own hands so you won't feel guilty when facing things.

The next morning, as soon as Lu Yanhe woke up, he heard the sound of suitcase wheels rolling.

He opened the door and saw Zhou Ping'an sitting on the sofa in the living room, saying to Li Zhibai and Yan Liang, who were about to leave, "You two should do your best and seize this opportunity."

Li Zhibai had just woken up, his eyelids drooping, not wanting to say anything. He seemed to disregard Zhou Ping'an's instructions and lazily yawned.

Yan Liang responded with a "okay".

They were taken away by their accompanying assistants.

As the door was closed from the outside, only Lu Yanhe and Zhou Pingan remained in the room.

Lu Yanhe looked at Zhou Ping'an.

Zhou Ping'an also looked at him.

The moment their eyes met, Zhou Ping'an smiled.

"Oh, you're awake?" Zhou Ping'an said. "I thought I'd have to wait for you for a while. Since you're awake, come and sit down."

Lu Yanhe walked over and sat down.

Zhou Pingan asked, "How did the exam go?"

"good."

Zhou Ping'an showed the concern of an elder for a younger person, nodded, and said, "It's good that you did well on the exam."

"What about the termination agreement?" Lu Yanhe cut to the chase, not wanting to continue this pretense with Zhou Ping'an. "Just sign it."

Zhou Ping'an was taken aback, seemingly not expecting Lu Yanhe to bring this up on his own initiative.

He said, "You've really changed a lot."

Lu Yanhe did not respond to this.

Whether he has changed or not, it has nothing to do with Zhou Ping'an anymore.

Zhou Pingan produced the termination agreement.

Lu Yanhe took it in his hand, looked at it carefully, picked up a pen, and signed the termination agreement without hesitation.

"Alright." Lu Yanhe picked up his own portion and prepared to get up.

"Wait a minute," Zhou Ping'an suddenly called out to him.

Lu Yanhe looked at Zhou Ping'an with a puzzled expression and frowned.

"Is there anything else?"

Zhou Pingan took out a bulging envelope from the bag beside him.

"Here's ten thousand yuan." Zhou Ping'an put it on the table. "You just finished the college entrance exam, and you'll have a lot of expenses later. In any case, we've known each other for a while. If it weren't for someone in higher-ups trying to get rid of you, I would have been willing to continue mentoring you. Please accept this ten thousand yuan as a small compensation from me."

Lu Yanhe looked at him silently for a second, then said, "No need."

He turned around and went to the washroom.

Of course, the more money the better.

While self-esteem is important at this moment, there's nothing I can't accept the money for.

But Lu Yanhe was unwilling to accept the 10,000 yuan, not for his pride or anything else, he simply didn't want it.

No matter how much he needed money, he didn't want to accept 10,000 yuan at this time.

What does Zhou Ping'an mean? Is he using the 10,000 yuan to compensate him and buy peace of mind, or is he using the 10,000 yuan to buy him to keep quiet?

Lu Yanhe was always careful about terminating the contract, making sure that none of the agreements he signed contained any clauses about "gag order".

Of course, Zhou Ping'an didn't dare to add any more "gag order" clauses.

For him, his mission was accomplished as long as he could successfully kick Lu Yanhe out of the company.

As for whether or not the contract was terminated, even if Lu Yanhe later claimed that he was forced to terminate the contract, there was no evidence.

In reality, nothing had happened between them, and the company had a perfectly legitimate reason to terminate his contract.

An idol who has been in the industry for three years is still not very popular and no one is willing to help him. It is normal for them to terminate their contracts with him.

-

Zhou Ping'an went downstairs and headed straight for the parking lot, a smirk playing on his lips.

He didn't pay the ten thousand yuan himself; it was given to him by Vice President Ma.

It wasn't 10,000 at first; it was a full 50,000.

Unexpectedly, Lu Yanhe refused to accept it. That was just as well; the 50,000 yuan simply went into his pocket.

Now, he has successfully obtained the termination agreement without any unexpected problems, which has relieved Zhou Ping'an.

The elevator arrived at the basement level.

The elevator doors opened.

Zhou Ping'an was about to step out when he was stunned by the figure that appeared at the door.

"Zi... Ziyan?" Zhou Ping'an looked at the woman who had inexplicably appeared at the elevator door in surprise, momentarily stunned. "What are you doing here?"

A bad thought popped into Zhou Ping'an's mind.

The third artist that Chen Ziyan is supposed to manage has not yet been decided. Could it be that she has her eye on Lu Yanhe?

The moment this thought crossed Zhou Ping'an's mind, he couldn't help but gasp.

With sunglasses in her hand and an exquisite Hermès bag slung over her shoulder, Chen Ziyan always appeared like a wealthy socialite, rather than a celebrity agent.

She smiled slightly at Zhou Ping'an and said, "Oh, you're here too? Came to see the artists?"

"I—" Zhou Ping'an paused for a moment, just as he was thinking about what to say, when Tu Song suddenly ran over.

He was still holding a cardboard box in his arms. "Sister Ziyan, why are you walking so fast?"

Then, he saw Zhou Ping'an in the elevator, and his expression immediately changed. He was either completely devastated or in a much better state.

During the two years that Tu Song worked under Zhou Ping'an as his agent, his treatment was only slightly better than Lu Yanhe's, not much different. So why would he have a good attitude towards Zhou Ping'an?

Seeing Tu Song appear, Zhou Ping'an actually breathed a sigh of relief.

Yes, Chen Ziyan is now Tu Song's manager, so it's normal for her to be here.

Tu Song still lives here, but he has moved out of the room that Cheng Hai and the others shared.

"Tu Song," Zhou Ping'an laughed, "long time no see. You look much better. That's how you should be. Smile more. You used to always have a long face, like someone owed you money. Who would want to see you?"

Tu Song was so angry that his mouth twitched, and he wanted to retort, but Chen Ziyan glanced at Zhou Ping'an lightly and said, "Ping'an, although Tu Song used to be under your management, he is now under my supervision. It is my business to manage my artists, so you don't need to worry about it."

Zhou Ping'an received a rebuff, but he didn't dare to clash with Chen Ziyan.

"Haha, I was being presumptuous. It's my fault. After all, I've watched these kids grow up, and I always feel the urge to give them a few words of advice."

“Good teaching is always welcome,” Chen Ziyan said.

The implication left Zhou Pingan speechless.

Isn't Chen Ziyan implying that his teaching methods are subpar?!

Zhou Ping'an felt a fire burning inside him, but he silently suppressed it.

Chen Ziyan said to Tu Song, "Let's go up."

She didn't wait for Zhou Ping'an to come out and went straight into the elevator, with Tu Song immediately following her in.

Zhou Ping'an gave a forced smile and walked out.

He glanced back at them, and Chen Ziyan was also looking at him with a smile.

Their gazes were finally cut off by the elevator doors.

(End of this chapter)