Her works were taken down across all platforms?
Jin Lingling was nearly driven mad with anger. She searched online, and sure enough, whether it was movies or advertisements, everything was gone.
Then, another piece of news hit her like a hammer to the head.
“Three National Departments Jointly Issue Statement:坚决抵制劣质明星 (Resolutely Resist Substandard Celebrities).”
Seeing this, Jin Lingling’s eyes turned red.
This meant that, from now on, she was officially branded a disgraced artist.
“Hmph, don’t think this can shut me down, that’s wishful thinking.”
“Even if I can’t act in movies anymore, I’ll just switch to short videos.”
“My short video account has tens of millions of followers.”
Ding!
Her phone received a text message.
Jin Lingling opened it and saw it was from the short video platform.
“Hello, your account has been permanently banned.”
Damn it!
Jin Lingling leapt up in fury.
At that moment, her assistant Xiao Huang called.
“Sister Lingling, I… I’m going to work with another artist from now on,” Xiao Huang said.
Jin Lingling’s voice turned cold, “Xiao Huang, I’ve treated you well all these years, and now you’re abandoning me when I’m in trouble? Has your conscience been eaten by a dog?”
“Don’t you remember? Last time your dad needed surgery for liver cancer, it cost 500,000, didn’t I lend you 5,000?”
“You’re quitting on me now, what’s that supposed to mean?”
Xiao Huang replied, “Sister Lingling, this is the company’s decision.”
“Also, the thirty-something brands you endorsed just sent formal letters to the company, terminating their contracts with you and demanding compensation for breach of contract.”
“You’ll have to cover these penalties yourself.”
“I just calculated it for you, Sister Lingling, you’re looking at about one billion in compensation.”
What!
Jin Lingling’s vision darkened, and she nearly collapsed.
Though she’d made a lot of money over the years, she’d spent it all, leaving just a few million in her bank account.
One billion? What am I supposed to pay with?
This is going to kill me!
“Sister Lingling, having worked with you all these years, I’ve actually got a few things I’ve wanted to say for a long time.”
“Last time my dad needed 500,000 for his liver cancer surgery, you’d just signed five endorsement deals worth 30 million, I asked to borrow 500,000, and you only lent me 5,000. In the end, it was Sister Fang who lent me the 500,000.”
“Someone like you should just die sooner, living only pollutes society.”
Click!
Xiao Huang hung up.
If this were before, Jin Lingling would’ve cursed Xiao Huang out and told her to get lost, but now, it was as if she hadn’t heard Xiao Huang’s words at all—her eyes were lifeless, her face blank.
“One billion, I have to pay one billion, where am I going to get one billion?”
“What do I do?”
“Lin Jingzhi, you’re ruthless, forcing me to a dead end, fine, we’ll go down together!”
Jin Lingling’s face twisted with rage, wishing she could tear Lin Jingzhi to pieces.
After the anger subsided, she felt only a chilling coldness.
She’d been abandoned by her company, banned, and left with no way to make money—she was truly at a dead end.
If she didn’t pay the penalties, those brand partners would sue her, and her only outcome would be prison!
She’d visited a prison once while filming a TV show, seeing firsthand how miserable the female inmates’ lives were.
Almost every new prisoner got beaten upon arrival.
A big star like her, once admired and untouchable, would surely be beaten to death by the other inmates if she went in.
“I don’t want to go to prison.”
“I don’t have the money to pay.”
“There’s only one path left for me now.”
In utter despair, Jin Lingling thought of death!
Because only death could set her free.
“Miss Jin, it seems you’re in dire need of help right now!”
At that moment, a voice suddenly sounded beside her.
Jin Lingling turned her head and saw a young man dressed in a black robe, styled like a sorcerer, sitting on the sofa.
“Who are you?”
Startled, Jin Lingling looked at this uninvited guest and asked, “How did you get in?”
This was a presidential suite with tight security and a full smart system—getting in wasn’t easy for an outsider.
Why didn’t I notice this man entering at all?
Jin Lingling realised this young man was no ordinary person.
The young man smiled, “The world is vast, and no matter where it is, if I want to enter, I enter, if I want to leave, I leave—nothing can stop me.”
“Me”?
Jin Lingling frowned, puzzled, who was this man, calling himself “me” like that?
“What do you want?” she asked warily.
The young man said, “Do you know why you’ve ended up like this? Do you think it’s that woman who’s ruining you? Let me tell you, the real mastermind is that woman’s boyfriend, Ye Qiu.”
Ye Qiu?
Jin Lingling instinctively thought of the man who’d slapped her.
The young man continued, “Ye Qiu is the underground boss of Jiangzhou, one of the four Dragon Envoys of the Dragon Gate, worth billions, with heirs of several major families in the capital as his friends. Crushing you is easier for him than squashing an ant.”
Jin Lingling’s pupils shrank.
That little punk was that powerful?
“But don’t worry, I can help you,” the young man said. “All the troubles you’re facing, I can solve them.”
“You won’t have to pay a single cent of those penalties.”
“And if you want revenge, I can help with that too—whether it’s Lin Jingzhi or Ye Qiu, I can take them out for you.”
Jin Lingling’s eyes lit up.
If what this man said was true, it’d be like a light at the end of the tunnel for her.
But she wasn’t stupid.
In this world, aside from blood relatives, no one helped another person without reason.
“Since Ye Qiu’s so powerful, why should I believe you can handle him?” Jin Lingling asked.
“Hahaha, you have no choice right now, otherwise, your only path is death. Ye Qiu may be strong, but I’m no pushover either.”
At that, the man extended his palm toward Jin Lingling.
Instantly, she felt an immense force envelop her, rendering her unable to move, and then her body involuntarily fell into the young man’s arms.
“Miss Jin, do you believe in my abilities now?”
The young man’s lips curled into a smile, tinged with a hint of malice.
Jin Lingling’s heart raced with panic, this man felt like a devil to her, utterly terrifying.
“Why are you helping me?” she asked.
“Because I’m Ye Qiu’s enemy, and besides that, I’m quite interested in your body,” the young man said, then roughly tore her clothes apart.
In an instant, Jin Lingling’s skin was exposed to the air.
The young man’s eyes gleamed with a predatory light as he chuckled, “Not bad for a sexy star, what a body.”
“Come serve me.”
“If I’m satisfied, I guarantee I’ll get rid of Ye Qiu and Lin Jingzhi for you within a week.”
With that, the young man leaned back on the sofa.
Jin Lingling bit her lip, hesitated for a moment, then knelt down and undid the young man’s belt…
