Chapter 57

Chapter 57

Wang Shanshan hadn’t changed much. She took good care of herself, dressed fashionably, and her eyes still had a sparkle. She looked almost the same as ten years ago, even younger.

She had kept in touch with Chi Tuo’s mother over the past few years, knew that Chi Tuo had become a lawyer, and was aware that he had returned to the country. She just didn’t know that he had come to Baigang City or that he had contacted An Ye.

So when she saw Chi Tuo, Wang Shanshan was genuinely happy, patting him on the shoulder and saying, “Oh my, look at you, you've really grown up. I wouldn’t even recognize you on the street!”

The house An Ye had bought for her in the old city center of Wangcheng was in an area they had never even dared to imagine before. The location was very convenient, and the house had two units per floor. An Ye had bought the entire floor and had it completely opened up.

She was working hard to achieve her dreams, while her mother, however, didn’t care that her daughter was filming in a freezing mountain area on New Year’s Eve. Instead, Auntie had made an entire table of dishes.

“You came at just the right time.” Wang Shanshan led Chi Tuo into the living room. “Auntie’s cooking a lot today. You haven’t had Wangcheng’s food in ages, right? Stay and have dinner with us.”

“Are there guests?” Chi Tuo asked, standing at the entrance with a bunch of things, not entering right away.

“An Ye’s manager and a few reporters. Dinner is at eight, but they’re not here yet.” Wang Shanshan grabbed his hand. “Just come in, no need to change shoes, there are a lot of people today.”

“Wow, you’ve really grown a lot.” Wang Shanshan said again, delighted. “You must be almost 1.9 meters by now.”

“These are things An Ye asked me to bring.” Chi Tuo didn’t respond to Wang Shanshan’s comment, handing over the items in his left hand, then stuffing the items in his right hand to her. “These are from my mom. I’ve been busy since I came back, and haven’t had a chance to come see you.”

“Your mom is too polite!” Wang Shanshan took the things Chi Tuo handed over, then casually tossed the items An Ye had sent next to the shoe cabinet.

Chi Tuo glanced at it but didn’t say anything.

“You’ve gotten in touch with An Ye, huh? She never mentioned it to me.” Wang Shanshan waved for him to come in. “You’re such a thoughtful kid, coming all the way here on New Year’s Eve, are you worried I’d be lonely in Wangcheng during the holidays?”

She was very kind and warm, just like ten years ago.

All her hostility and restlessness were only directed at An Ye.

And now, she had started calling An Ye by her stage name.

The house had a strong New Year’s atmosphere. There were Spring Festival couplets on the door, and except for the windows that didn’t have window decorations, many of the ornaments had been replaced with red ones. On the large round table in the dining room, there were eight cold dishes, all seafood and meat. There were a few bottles of Maotai and Wuliangye liquor, and in the kitchen, a middle-aged woman wearing an apron was cooking, with a younger man assisting her.

The standards were high.

“How is it?” Wang Shanshan said proudly. “This Auntie is the head chef at Wangcheng Restaurant. I paid a lot to hire her.”

“Does An Ye’s manager not go home for the New Year?” Chi Tuo casually asked.

“She has to be able to go home, right?” Wang Shanshan sighed, pouring Chi Tuo a glass of water. He stood up and took it with both hands. “Her manager is really great. Originally, she was abroad doing a travel variety show with other celebrities, but she hurried back just in time for the Spring Festival to help handle An Ye’s business.”

“What’s the matter?” Chi Tuo asked.

Wang Shanshan sighed again, not continuing the topic. Instead, she turned to Chi Tuo. “Your mom said you’re the kind of lawyer who doesn’t have to go to court, right? Asset mergers and acquisitions and that sort of thing?”

Chi Tuo took a sip of water, neither confirming nor denying it, and just steered the conversation back. “Maybe I can help with something.”

Wang Shanshan waved her hand, thought for a moment, and said, “It’s that sleeping problem An Ye has, you remember, right?”

“Yeah.” Chi Tuo showed no emotion on his face, only giving the impression that he was listening attentively to his elder.

“An Ye’s manager, Xiao Yan, told me someone caught her sleeping on set and used it to blackmail Huanyou Entertainment—oh, that’s the company An Ye is with now, the biggest one in the country.”“Xiao Yan’s idea is that the reporter is asking for too much money, which isn’t worth it. And An Ye’s condition will be discovered sooner or later, so it’s better to take the opportunity and make it public now. After all, she already has a fanbase. Although this illness is a mental disorder, in today’s world, what young person doesn’t have some kind of illness, right?”

“So, I’m setting up a gathering, inviting a few reporters I usually work with to my house for dinner. I’ll bring up An Ye’s problem and steer the public opinion towards sympathy for her.”

“You don’t know because you’ve been abroad.” Wang Shanshan sighed, “An Ye really...”

She pointed to her head: “There’s something wrong here. In the middle of the night, she suddenly starts crying loudly, or else she’ll grab people’s clothes and refuse to let go. I even saw her sharpening a knife in the living room once…”

“If this really gets out, An Ye’s mental state will definitely not be able to handle it…”

Chi Tuo quietly listened without saying a word.

“You stay and eat with us today,” Wang Shanshan said. “Help me out with some advice.”

“Don’t think that just because An Ye has been doing well these past few years and has a good reputation, that it was all due to her talent. In fact, all of this was built with Xiao Yan and me through countless dinners, bargaining and negotiating. She had no background at all, just acting, acting, acting. Without me and these operations behind the scenes, she wouldn’t survive in this industry…”

Wang Shanshan said this so fluently, it didn’t even sound like she was complaining like before, when it was always An Huai Min going back and forth about the same things. Now, her speech was very logical.

She spoke with full excitement and pride.

An Ye’s success was due to her and the manager’s hard work, to the effort they put into shaping her. That’s how An Ye became the star she is today.

At this moment, Chi Tuo was just relieved that An Ye had requested guardianship. That agreement had already been notarized, and the woman sitting across from him no longer had the power to tie An Ye to a bed during one of her episodes.

“Auntie.” Chi Tuo had become very skilled at keeping his emotions in check over the years. Wang Shanshan, with her life experience, couldn’t tell at all that he was really unhappy. He asked slowly, “Are you and An Ye’s manager planning to reveal her narcolepsy to the reporters during the dinner?”

Wang Shanshan nodded. “The entertainment industry is chaotic. This is a preemptive strike. The first person to speak has the most influence.”

Chi Tuo smiled and asked again, “What happens after it’s made public?”

Wang Shanshan froze for a moment.

Chi Tuo asked her, “After it’s made public, will it affect her current projects?”

“That won’t happen.” Wang Shanshan waved her hand. “Director Yang Zhengyi, you should know him, the person who brought An Ye into the industry. The role she’s playing now is also a mentally ill person, so it might even boost her movie’s box office. It’s the way things are nowadays; even the best wine fears a deep alley. Everything needs publicity.”

Chi Tuo nodded and continued asking, “What about her endorsements?”

Wang Shanshan froze again.

Chi Tuo smiled slightly. “Maybe I’m just more sensitive about this. Normally, when brands choose an endorser, they care about the endorser’s image. Once you make it all public, you might have to pay breach-of-contract fees. Has An Ye’s manager talked to you about this?”

“Then…” Wang Shanshan’s voice lowered slightly. “It shouldn’t be a problem. An Ye’s manager’s company is very big. Most of the movies and TV shows currently in theaters were invested by them, and their legal team is strong... They even managed to negotiate a contract with that previous shady company.”

Her voice dropped further when she mentioned the previous agency.

“An Ye’s endorsements are all from big companies, and many are international brands,” Chi Tuo said, speaking slowly and in a deep voice. His serious, composed demeanor made him quite convincing. “Even though An Ye’s manager is probably quite capable, when it comes to legal paperwork, I think it’s better to be cautious.”

Wang Shanshan fell silent.

Chi Tuo had hit a nerve, and she seemed a bit dazed.

“Then, you…” she tugged at Chi Tuo. “Why don’t you help me talk to them later? I don’t really understand these things. Xiao Yan is reliable, but she’s not a professional.”

“These things need to be handled by Huanyou’s legal team.” Chi Tuo said. “Some of the specific clauses I’m not sure about. They need to sit down and go through them, calculate the exact financial losses. If An Ye agrees, then it’s up to her manager and PR team after that.”

Wang Shanshan furrowed her brow. “How do we do this? The dinner is already prepared.”

“But maybe these things have already been discussed with An Ye?” Chi Tuo said. “If they’ve agreed, then this dinner will still be worth it.”Wang Shanshan remained silent.

It was certain that she hadn’t discussed this with An Ye. She had only heard from Yan Wan, who was in a hurry abroad, saying that someone had caught An Ye having an episode and was blackmailing the company for millions. Yan Wan had rushed back and asked her to prepare. When the reporters asked anything, she should answer according to what Yan Wan had said, and anything she didn’t know, she would just follow his cues.

She hadn’t thought that deeply.

Over the years, Yan Wan had long ceased to be the same Yan Ge. He was now a gold-tier agent in the industry, and she believed that anyone he brought in would surely be reliable.

Much more so than stubborn An Ye.

In the end, Chi Tuo didn’t stay for dinner. After planting a subtle warning and setting up a potential trap, he made an excuse that, as an outsider and a lawyer, his presence at such an event might upset Yan Wan. So, he left.

Once he got in the car, he drove it to the parking spot downstairs from Wang Shanshan’s house, turned off the engine, and put a cigarette in his mouth. He didn’t light it but just held it there quietly.

When Yan Wan’s black Audi Q7 arrived and parked downstairs, Chi Tuo snapped a few photos, took the cigarette out of his mouth, and called Lin Hao.

“Sorry,” he said, “I need to work over the holiday. We can start on An Ye’s case now. Send the lawyer’s letter that we had prepared earlier. Also, make sure to log the overtime hours.”

Lin Hao was a little stunned. Since the New Year’s Eve was a working day, most people had already stopped focusing on work and were counting down the hours to go home. He didn’t expect Chi Tuo to go all in.

“Oh, okay.” Lin Hao quickly responded and asked, “Should I send it directly to Huanyou as planned?”

“Mm,” Chi Tuo replied.

After hanging up, he sent the photos to Qi Wei.

Qi Wei quickly responded with a “received” emoji and then a “starting work” emoji.

Once everything was done, Chi Tuo leaned back in his seat, his hand pressing against his forehead.

His head was pounding, and he was starting to sweat coldly.

While he was distracting Wang Shanshan earlier, he had received messages and a call from An Ye. He should’ve replied to her immediately, but when he picked up his phone and saw the little goose emoji, his vision became blurry.

He opened the glove compartment, took out a pill, and swallowed it dry.

He lay back, eyes closed, waiting for the cold sweat to subside. Coming back to Wang Cheng had still been a bit too much for him.

Visitors began to arrive at Wang Shanshan’s house. Chi Tuo took pictures of each person and sent them to Qi Wei, then paused for a moment.

It was nearly 8 PM, so An Ye’s shooting should have started by now.

Chi Tuo gave up on calling An Ye. After leaving the neighborhood, he casually drove into a nearby KFC to wash his face, then called for an expensive intercity chauffeur service.

He should be able to make it, he thought.

He had to go over and spend the New Year’s Eve with her.