Huayu Entertainment: Starting with Exorcising Evil from a Film Queen

"Even if we're just friends, let alone our current relationship, I would still sign you if given the chance."

He looked at Zhao Liying's slightly reddened eyes and continued speaking.

"So, Ms. Zhao Liying, would you be willing to become the first and only female artist signed by my studio?"

He deliberately used a solemn tone.

Zhao Liying was taken aback at first, then burst into laughter through her tears and nodded vigorously.

However, Zhang Ze's next words poured cold water on her.

"However, I need to make things clear to you first."

"The studio is just an empty shell right now. It was just registered, and the only thing in the account is the 200,000 yuan in film remuneration I just received."

"No acting offers at the moment. We're looking for an agent, but haven't found one yet. We haven't hired an assistant either."

He laid bare his most realistic predicament before her.

Zhao Liying's smile slowly faded. She listened quietly, her expression revealing neither joy nor anger.

Silence fell over the room for a moment.

After a while, she suddenly raised her head, looked at Zhang Ze, and spoke softly.

"What will I do if I lose my job?"

Her voice trembled almost imperceptibly at the end.

Will you take care of me?

Seeing her feigned strength, Zhang Ze nodded without hesitation.

"I'll take care of you."

Three words, light as a feather, yet they struck Zhao Liying's heart with a heavy blow.

Her eyes instantly welled up with tears.

Those three words were spoken softly, yet they calmed Zhao Liying's heart completely.

She didn't ask any more questions, but nodded vigorously, suppressing all her unease and fear.

Since he said he would take care of her, that's enough.

The two did not draft any formal agency contract. The studio did not even have a proper office space. Everything was still in its infancy, and it was too early to talk about a contract.

The next morning, a sudden, urgent cell phone ring woke Zhang Ze from his sleep.

He touched his phone, and the words "Yang Mi" appeared on the screen.

"Feed?"

Zhang Ze's voice was still hoarse from just waking up.

Yang Mi on the other end of the phone seemed to hesitate for a moment before speaking, her voice tinged with embarrassment.

Her voice was soft and gentle, with a hint of caution.

"Um... Zhang Ze, are you free right now?"

This tone was completely different from the fierce and resentful tone he had sensed a couple of days ago.

Zhang Ze didn't care about her 180-degree change in attitude; he just found it a bit funny that this girl could change her mind so quickly.

"What is it? Speak."

"Could you come to the capital?"

Yang Mi spoke rather quickly, "I have a good friend... she, she seems to be in some trouble."

Zhang Ze did not agree immediately, but instead looked at Zhao Liying on the bed.

I've only been back for a day, and I haven't even had a chance to sit down properly before I have to leave again. It doesn't seem right.

"The capital? That's so far away?"

"Yes, it's a bit urgent, otherwise I wouldn't have called you so soon." Yang Mi's voice was pleading. "Don't ask so many questions yet, you'll understand once you get here. I'll reimburse your plane ticket!"

Zhang Ze neither refused nor agreed, but simply said he would think about it.

After hanging up the phone, Zhao Liying was already awake, staring at him with her big eyes wide open.

"Are you going to the capital?"

"Yes, Yang Mi contacted me, saying her friend ran into some trouble," Zhang Ze explained.

Zhao Liying said "oh," sat up from the bed, and naturally found the clothes he needed to change into.

"Then hurry up and go, don't keep them waiting."

Zhang Ze was somewhat surprised by her reaction; he had thought she would be unhappy.

Zhao Liling saw through his thoughts and rolled her eyes at him.

"I'm not the clingy girl type. You have important things to do, do you think I'd stop you? Besides, didn't you say you'd support me? How can you support me if you don't go out and earn money?"

As she spoke, she pushed him into the bathroom.

Go early and come back early.

This sounds just like a young wife seeing her husband off at the door.

With this thought in mind, Zhang Ze quickly got everything ready.

Without delay, he booked the next available flight to Beijing online.

A few hours later, the plane landed at Beijing Capital International Airport.

As soon as Zhang Ze stepped out of the arrival gate, he saw Yang Mi peeking out from the crowd.

She dressed casually today, wearing a hat and sunglasses, but her iconic long legs and imposing stature still made her stand out in the crowd.

Yang Mi also saw him and quickly walked over.

Her expression was somewhat complicated.

On the one hand, last night she was cursing Zhang Ze in her heart because of Tang Yan's matter, and her chest hurt from anger.

On the other hand, I called him urgently this morning for help, and he actually bought a plane ticket and flew over without saying a word, without even asking what the problem was.

This act of loyalty touched her deeply.

He's a total jerk, but he's also incredibly reliable.

"Let's go, the car is over there."

Yang Mi led the way with her head down, not saying much to him.

I got into the nanny van parked by the roadside, the driver started the car, and we merged into the traffic.

The carriage was quiet.

Zhang Zexian spoke first.

"What exactly happened? What trouble did your friend run into?"

Yang Mi then turned her head, took off her sunglasses, and her beautiful fox-like eyes showed a hint of worry.

"It's my best friend, Liu Yifei."

Liu Yifei?

The name stirred something in Zhang Ze's heart.

Oh, fairy sister!

"She's been having some strange things happen at home lately, and it's really frightening her."

Yang Mi continued, "Last night when I came back from the film set, she came to me crying and complaining. She was completely terrified."

"As soon as I heard what she said, I immediately thought of you."

After all, Yang Mi knew that Zhang Ze was indeed quite capable.

Zhang Ze immediately became interested.

He was in this line of work, and he was also very curious about what strange thing could have scared the future fairy sister like that.

"Okay, we'll see once we go take a look."

The van drove through the bustling streets of Beijing, eventually entering an upscale villa district and stopping in front of a detached villa.

The two got out of the car, and a girl in casual clothes was already waiting at the door. When she saw Yang Mi, she immediately came to greet her.

Zhang Ze sized up the girl in front of him.

This is Liu Yifei.

With her bare face, her skin was so white it glowed, and her features were so exquisite that she truly deserved the title of "Fairy Sister."

She looked quite young, with a bit of baby fat on her face, lacking the cool and aloof aura she later possessed, and instead exuding a friendly, girl-next-door charm.

It has to be said that Liu Yifei looked stunning at that moment; she was beautiful even without makeup. However, when she smiled and showed her teeth after seeing Yang Mi, it seemed to slightly detract from her overall appearance.

"Honey!"

When Liu Yifei saw Yang Mi, it was like seeing a savior. She rushed over and gave her a big bear hug.

The two girls hugged each other, jumping and chattering away.