Chapter Seven: The Wager Agreement!

“Mr. He, the songs by Jiang Yun are top-tier works. I believe his music will become the kind of classic passed down through generations,” Li Lulu declared.

He Yong chuckled, “Talking about classics passed down for generations is a bit premature. Let’s focus on the present, shall we?”

“Very well, let’s talk about the present,” Li Lulu replied. “Right now, Jiang Yun’s songs are incredibly popular.”

“For example, just a single live performance video on Weibo has already surpassed ten million views. I’m confident that once we release his singles on your platform, the streaming numbers will be just as impressive!” Li Lulu spoke with conviction.

He Yong nodded, “You make a good point.”

“But, Mr. Jiang isn’t very well-known at the moment,” He Yong added.

Li Lulu let out a small laugh.

He Yong frowned, “What are you laughing at?”

Li Lulu said, “Mr. He, you must not have seen yesterday’s top trending topic on Weibo?”

He Yong shook his head.

Li Lulu continued, “Yesterday’s trending search was about a mysterious challenger on ‘You’ve Got Talent,’ who performed an original song and succeeded in defeating the competition.”

He Yong was puzzled, “And how is that relevant to our discussion?”

Li Lulu replied, “That mysterious challenger was none other than Mr. Jiang Yun himself. He sang a new song. I believe, after last night and this morning, the news has already spread widely.”

He Yong was taken aback. Coming to his senses, he flagged down a waitress and asked, “Are you aware of yesterday’s trending topic?”

The waitress answered, “Of course! Jiang Yun’s new song, and he won the challenge.”

Still skeptical, He Yong took out his phone to check for himself.

He let out a breath. “I’ll need to reconsider things.”

All the while, Jiang Yun had been watching the verbal sparring between the two, finding it highly entertaining. Now that both had gone silent, he turned his attention to his own matters.

“System, open personal panel.”

A beep sounded.

Host: Jiang Yun.

Singing: Grade A (So-so)

Acting: Grade D (Even children are more gifted than you)

Directing: Grade D (Can shoot a low-budget, unlicensed film)

Owned Songs: “Words Contradict the Heart,” “Crossing the Sea to See You,” “Fragrant Rice,” “Sad Pacific.”

Physical Attributes: Special Forces Physique.

Popularity Score: 200,086.

“Goodness, my popularity score has shot up so much!” Jiang Yun nearly exclaimed aloud.

He managed to restrain himself.

“Ding! Congratulations, Host. Popularity has surpassed 200,000. Skill reward: Expert Culinary Arts.”

Jiang Yun suddenly felt his hands become remarkably nimble, and in his mind appeared the recipes for over a thousand dishes.

“System, I already know how to cook. What’s the point of this skill?”

“Expert Culinary Arts not only enables you to follow recipes but also to master dishes that aren’t included in any recipe book. Once you use this skill, you’ll understand!”

“Boss? Boss?”

“Mr. Jiang? Mr. Jiang?”

“Huh?” Jiang Yun snapped back to reality.

“Boss, you were lost in thought,” Li Lulu said.

“Oh, sorry!” Jiang Yun apologized quickly.

“It’s all right. Perhaps Mr. Jiang is just tired,” He Yong responded, looking sympathetic.

Jiang Yun broke into a cold sweat. From He Yong’s expression, it was clear he was drawing the wrong conclusion.

Li Lulu was simply confused.

He Yong asked, “What are your terms?”

Li Lulu exchanged a glance with Jiang Yun before replying, “We want a fifty percent share once the songs are released.”

He Yong sucked in a sharp breath. “You’re really not afraid to drive a hard bargain.”

“To be honest, Mr. He, we received a call from Penguin Music on our way here. They offered one hundred thousand for two songs, and we turned them down.”

“In fact, their offer is the same as your fifty thousand per song,” Li Lulu added.

“But Mr. Jiang really isn’t very well-known yet,” He Yong said, troubled.

Jiang Yun mused, “Mr. He, how about this—we make a performance-based agreement.”

“What kind of performance-based agreement?” He Yong became interested.

“Once my music is released, if the number of plays reaches thirty million, we get five percent.”

“If it reaches fifty million, we get ten percent.

Eighty million, twenty percent.

One hundred million, fifty percent.”

“If the threshold isn’t met, I receive nothing!” Jiang Yun said boldly.

“And my songs are not limited to just these—there will be more and more in the future!”

“If this collaboration goes well, all my future songs can be released on NetEase Music.”

Jiang Yun’s proposal was clearly advantageous for their side; He Yong was tempted. “I’ll have to consult the chief editor.”

“All right,” Jiang Yun nodded.

He Yong got up and walked to the restroom to make a call. “Chief Editor, here’s the situation…”

He relayed Jiang Yun’s terms.

“So, Xiao He, what do you think?” came the voice from the other end.

“I think this performance-based agreement is extremely favorable to us,” He Yong explained. “Thirty million streams is already the level of a first-tier singer, and their copyright shares are already at ten percent. He’s only asking for five percent, and if the threshold isn’t met, he gets nothing…”

“Moreover, his future songs will also be released on our platform. I believe Jiang Yun has the potential to become a top singer.”

“All right, let’s proceed as discussed. I’ll leave it to you.”

After hanging up, He Yong returned to the booth and announced, “Our chief editor agrees to the performance-based agreement.”

A faint smile appeared on Jiang Yun’s lips. He nodded, “Then it’s settled.”

“Excellent!”

Jiang Yun sent Li Lulu off to print the contract, and chatted idly with He Yong.

When Li Lulu didn’t return for some time, Jiang Yun began to feel uneasy.

“Let’s go have a look,” He Yong suggested.

“Let’s.”

The two settled the bill and stepped out of the café, only to find Li Lulu surrounded by several women.

Jiang Yun strode over.

“You little wretch, how dare you bump into me. I’ll make sure you regret this!” The speaker was none other than Wang Lili, the original owner’s ex-girlfriend.

Wang Lili raised her hand to strike, but Jiang Yun dashed forward and seized her wrist.

“Jiang… Yun?” Wang Lili recognized him, startled.

“Boss…” Li Lulu looked at Jiang Yun, her eyes brimming with tears.

“Boss?” Wang Lili recovered and said, “Jiang Yun, I advise you to stay out of this!”

Jiang Yun scoffed, “You never change, do you?”

“And you lot!” He pointed at Wang Lili’s friends. “Birds of a feather flock together! Bullying a college girl in broad daylight—have you no shame?”

Turning to Li Lulu, he asked, “Did any of them pick on you?”

Seeing Jiang Yun’s domineering aura, Li Lulu’s heart skipped a beat.

Wow, a real-life domineering CEO—so dreamy.

With stars in her eyes, she replied, “No, they just want me to pay for the skirt.”

“That’s right, you have to pay for Lili’s skirt. It’s an LV limited edition, and now there’s milk tea all over it. You must compensate her,” one of Wang Lili’s friends said.

“How much is it? I’ll pay,” Jiang Yun replied.