Chapter 87
Lin Yi’s contract with the agency was about to expire.
In the past, the agency didn’t care whether Lin Yi stayed or left, but now they were doing everything possible to keep him.
After all, their company lacked top-tier artists, and Lin Yi, with over thirty million followers on Weibo, had become their undisputed top star.
During this period, Lin Yi had only filmed one variety show with children, yet it was easy to imagine that if he took on more projects and further expanded his fame, he would become even more popular.
Based on this, the agency began to think of ways to retain Lin Yi. If they could persuade him to renew his contract and stay with them for a few more years, it would undoubtedly bring in substantial profits for the company.
To keep Lin Yi, a vice president of the agency and his agent arranged a dinner invitation for him.
When Lin Yi received the call from his agent, he was lying on the sofa watching TV and immediately said he didn’t want to go out.
The agent, now groveling before Lin Yi, smiled and said, “Lin Yi, the private room is ready, just waiting for you. Where are you? I can send a car to pick you up-no, I’ll come personally.”
Back then, the agent used to bark orders at the original host, even berating him when displeased and frequently withholding his rightful earnings. However, now the attitude had done a complete 180-degree turn.
Lin Yi thought for a moment and then changed his mind: “Alright, I’ll come.”
The agent immediately beamed with joy. “Good, good, good. Tell me where you are, and I’ll come pick you up.”
Lin Yi hung up the phone, stood up from the sofa, and slowly walked out of the villa.
Since the agent and the executives insisted on treating him, he wouldn’t be polite.
Forty minutes later, Lin Yi was picked up by his agent and taken to a private room in a large restaurant.
The agent bowed and scraped around him the whole time, acting like a lackey, even opening the private room door for Lin Yi first.
Lin Yi said nothing and walked into the room calmly.
At that moment, the vice president in the room saw Lin Yi arrive and got up to greet him warmly: “Lin Yi, welcome! Please sit down!”
Lin Yi gave the vice president a cool glance.
The original host had a history with this vice president. Once, to discuss a collaboration, the vice president dragged the original host along to drink, forcing him to consume a lot of alcohol.
Later, when the original host finally mustered the courage to say he couldn’t drink anymore, the vice president mocked him and warned him not to be ungrateful.
The original host, being timid, dared not say anything more and kept drinking until he ended up in the hospital.
Lin Yi stared at the vice president.
It was unclear whether the vice president remembered the incident, but now he seemed extremely friendly.
Soon, Lin Yi looked away and walked over to sit at the table.
The vice president even handed him the menu personally. “Order some dishes; you must be hungry after the journey.”
This vice president was trying to win over Lin Yi for a reason. He was currently competing with another vice president, and having more artist resources under his control would give him an advantage.
Now, Lin Yi was the company’s ace, and whoever secured him would gain a firm footing.
Lin Yi knew these two called him here for a reason.
But what they wanted to say was their business; he would simply enjoy the meal.
Not just any meal, but the most expensive one.
Lin Yi ordered the priciest dishes, selecting nearly a dozen.
The vice president and the agent were momentarily stunned.
However, they quickly reassured themselves. After all, you can’t catch a wolf without letting go of the lamb.
Once they successfully persuaded Lin Yi to renew his contract, they could recoup the costs from him.
This time, they needed to work hard on the contract, setting several traps so that Lin Yi couldn’t continue as he had, taking only one variety show and turning down other offers, causing them significant financial losses.
After finishing his order, Lin Yi noticed the other two staring at him and raised an eyebrow. “What’s wrong?”
The agent hurriedly said, “Nothing, nothing. Is it enough? You can order more if you need.”
He was already feeling the pinch, knowing he would have to foot the bill. Could he really expect the vice president to treat?
Lin Yi put down the menu. “No need.”
The agent visibly relaxed.
The dishes Lin Yi had ordered already amounted to nearly ten thousand yuan. Any more, and he would have cried.
Next, the vice president also placed his order.
The agent symbolically ordered a dozen drinks and then put down the menu.
Soon, their dishes arrived.
Lin Yi, naturally, didn’t plan to be polite in front of these two. He picked up his chopsticks and said, “I’m going to start eating.”
The vice president and the agent both urged him, “Eat, eat, eat more.”
These two were now treating Lin Yi with utmost caution.
Lin Yi didn’t care about their attitudes. He picked up a dish with his chopsticks and savored it.
Without saying much else, the food at this restaurant was indeed excellent, no wonder each dish was so pricey.
Lin Yi enjoyed his meal thoroughly.
One of his greatest strengths was that he wouldn’t let others affect his mood.
Even though he knew the two had invited him to dinner with some ulterior motive, it didn’t bother him in the slightest.
His mindset was strong and steady; even if he were sitting across from a group of enemies, he would remain calm, eating and drinking as usual.
During the meal, the agent poured a glass of wine for each of them and said, “Come on, let’s have a toast together.”
Lin Yi immediately responded, “I don’t hold my liquor well.”
The agent and the vice president felt a bit awkward.
They had both witnessed Lin Yi’s alcohol tolerance, which certainly couldn’t be described as “poor.”
In the past, they would have forced him to drink no matter what.
But now, they didn’t dare do that.
After all, times had changed, and they were here to persuade Lin Yi to renew his contract.
For a moment, the table fell silent.
The vice president and the agent exchanged glances.
Lin Yi continued eating his food.
Finally, the vice president broke the silence: “If that’s the case, Lin Yi, you can toast with tea instead.”
Lin Yi agreed readily, “Sure.”
He then picked up the teacup beside him, drained it in one go, and showed them the empty cup: “I’ve finished mine. Your turn.”
The vice president and the agent were speechless.
With no choice, they also raised their glasses and drank them down.
For some reason, they felt like they were here to accompany him.
From then on, every time Lin Yi had a cup of tea, the two of them had a cup of wine.
Until at one point, the vice president started feeling a headache and hurriedly stopped drinking, saying, “Lin Yi, your contract is about to expire, right? Let’s find a good day to sign a new one.”
As Lin Yi slowly chewed his food, he thought to himself that this must be why they invited him today. It matched his expectations.
However, he had no intention of agreeing.
After swallowing his food, he said leisurely, “It hasn’t expired yet.”
The vice president sensed Lin Yi’s reluctance and quickly used serving chopsticks to place a piece of meat on his plate, “It’s better to prepare early.”
The agent chimed in, “That’s right, Lin Yi. Think about it, since you signed with our company, we’ve had a pretty pleasant cooperation, haven’t we? If we continue, it will surely be mutually beneficial.”
Pleasant cooperation?!
Lin Yi gave an ambiguous smile.
The original owner had suffered greatly, and apart from the Lin family, most of the torment came from this company.
How could they talk about pleasant cooperation?
Thinking of this, Lin Yi’s expression remained unchanged. He picked up his teacup, took a sip, and said, “Let’s discuss it when the contract expires.”
Clearly, he still wasn’t planning to sign.
Upon hearing this, the vice president and the agent exchanged glances.
After a moment, the agent picked up a bag from the table and placed it in front of Lin Yi, “Lin Yi, this is a small gift from the company. See if you like it.”
Lin Yi looked into the bag.
Inside seemed to be a top-grade jade.
Lin Yi took the bag, seemingly finally showing interest, “Then let’s talk about the contract renewal.”
The vice president and the agent were delighted and quickly began discussing the contract details.
Of course, they deliberately skipped over the unfavorable parts and only mentioned the benefits for Lin Yi.
While they talked, Lin Yi ate leisurely.
After a long discussion, seeing Lin Yi show no reaction, they asked, “Lin Yi, what do you think?”
Lin Yi put on disposable gloves, picked up a shrimp, and while peeling it slowly, said, “Why don’t you start over? I didn’t quite understand.”
The vice president and the agent were speechless.
They had a hunch that Lin Yi might be playing with them.
But given their current position, they had to set aside these thoughts and explained the contract again, painting a grand future for Lin Yi.
By the end, their throats were parched from talking so much. They hastily grabbed their cups and gulped down the liquid, forgetting it was wine, causing them to cough uncomfortably.
The vice president, being a senior executive, was struggling to control his anger. He tried to keep his composure and said to Lin Yi, “Lin Yi, we explained it again. Do you understand now?”
Lin Yi finally nodded, “Yes, I understand.”
The vice president was overjoyed, “Then why not sign the contract today?”
Speaking of which, he urged the agent, “Quickly bring out the contract!”
“Alright, alright!”
The agent rummaged through his briefcase.
At this moment, Lin Yi took off his disposable gloves, tossed them on the table, and then wiped his mouth with a napkin.
After finishing all of this, he stood up holding the bag containing the jade: “I ate quite satisfactorily today. Thank you for your hospitality.”
With that, he leisurely walked toward the door.
The vice president was stunned by this scene: “Lin Yi, where are you going? We haven’t signed the contract yet!”
Lin Yi stopped, looking at him in confusion: “Who said we were going to sign a contract?”
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