The wealthy military officer spoils his wife excessively

"There are too many unsatisfactory things in this world, can't I just be happy in my own little world?"

He was silent for a moment, pursed his lips, and his clear voice was still as pleasant as ever: "I thought you would be doing well."

She smiled.

"You took Grandpa's check, so why are you still living in a place like this? Where did all your money go? Isn't that enough to rent a nicer place?" His voice turned noticeably colder, tinged with a sarcastic tone.

She shrugged and quickly replied, "You know, in our line of work, appearances are much more important than substance. Everything we wear and use is a designer brand."

At this point, she realized that she had fallen asleep in a daze tonight and had Lu Zheng bring the clothes and shoes back to her, and Zhou Mo's clothes and shoes had not been returned to her yet!

Lu Zheng looked at her without saying a word, his gaze indifferent.

She waved her hand: "If there's nothing else, I'll go upstairs now."

She started walking, but he didn't move. A moment later, the footsteps returned. Suwen stopped in front of the building, turned around, and said to him, "Wait for me a moment."

He stopped in his tracks, took out a cigarette, lit it, and that was considered tacit consent.

Suwen quickly ran up, grabbed his suit jacket, and came back down. He held the cigarette in his hand, but didn't smoke it, just letting it burn, the sparks at the tip flickering.

"Give it back to you."

Lu Zheng raised an eyebrow at her, a hint of impatience in his dark eyes.

He stubbed out his cigarette, and as he reached for the clothes, he suddenly exerted force, his hand gripping her wrist along the fabric. With a sharp pull, she crashed into his arms, the impact causing her pain.

His hands gripped her back, constricting her like iron arms, as if trying to embed her into his body.

"come back to me."

A deep voice rose from his Adam's apple, causing a slight tremor in his chest. Suwen nestled obediently against him, gently resting her chin on his shoulder, close to his ear.

"can."

Two words, spoken softly and gently. The hand around her waist tightened, and he held her even more tightly.

“However…” there was a hint of amusement in her voice, “the price is going up now, boss.”

It was almost midnight when the power was fixed, and Xiang Ru lay down, dozing off.

Suwen broke out in a sweat, wiped the dust off her hands, grabbed her pajamas, and went to take a shower. After showering, she went out to do laundry. She didn't dare soak Zhou Mo's dress in water, so she just rubbed the dust off her hands and then hung it on the balcony to dry. The night breeze on the balcony was very cool, and she couldn't help but stand there for a while.

Night had fallen, and a dim, dark red light shone from the alleyway lined with Chinese scholar trees, like a sleepy person blinking. She was utterly astonished, and standing on tiptoe, she could vaguely make out the sapphire blue car body in the pale, indistinct light.

Feeling guilty, she immediately withdrew, not daring to delve into his intentions for staying so late. In the quiet night, memories uncontrollably flooded back.

Her grandfather's arrogant expression when he handed her the check, and his words: "You'll only get in Lu Zheng's way."

She doesn't quite remember how she received the check, only that it was a thin piece of paper with red squares, and the old man's handwriting was messy yet vigorous. With a stroke of his pen, he wrote seven zeros at the end, and the payment deadline was ten days.

Several times she wanted to tear up the paper in front of the old man and tell him, "I don't care!"

You won't know the value of money if you've never experienced the hardship of being broke.

She pinched her palms hard, and by the time she left the Lu family home, blood was seeping from them and slowly congealing. She had been hiding under the huge old locust tree, watching Lu Zheng chase after her until he finally coughed up blood and collapsed. Her body slowly went limp, as if someone had pulled out all her bones. The rough tree trunk pressed against her forehead, and she slammed it against it with all her might, until her flesh was mangled and blood kept flowing down, blurring her vision. She could no longer see Lu Zheng's face.

call--

She gasped and leaned against the screen door. Behind her, she heard Xiang Ru's soft snoring. On a night like this, even the stars were hard to see, yet two people were equally caught in the awkward predicament of sleeplessness.

Lu Zheng sat in the car, took out the last cigarette from the pack, and lit it. A faint halo of smoke lingered in the car. He took a deep breath and slowly exhaled, just like the pain from that time, silently lingering, still a vivid reminder after three years.

The distant sound of a car approached. Suwen's legs were numb from standing. She rubbed them as she went back into the house, bent down and knelt on the ground, and found a rusty jewelry box under the bed.

Although the outside was covered in dust, the inside was spotless. There was no jewelry, only a yellowed, expired check and a thick stack of banknotes.

Twenty-two thousand seven hundred and sixty yuan. She didn't touch a single penny.

She originally had 24,000 yuan left after paying tuition and accommodation fees, but when she flew to Beijing to see Lu Zheng, she bought a full-price plane ticket, which cost her more than 1,000 yuan.

During her most desperate time, she held the box tightly in her arms, preferring to eat a single packet of instant noodles over three meals rather than let Xiang Ru take the money out to spend.

What is the point of this futile persistence? Even she herself doesn't understand. When people are at their poorest and most destitute, they can abandon dignity and morality, yet they always want to preserve some of the most beautiful and happiest moments of their lives.

When Suwen returned the clothes to Zhou Mo, Zhou Mo was paying attention to today's entertainment headlines.

"Huayi did this on purpose, didn't they? It's their home turf, and they're showing no respect!" She was pointing to the news from last night's Star Press Conference, where a huge page was filled with a single photo of Xiao Rong appearing with Ji Xuan and Xue Shaofeng.

Moreover, most newspapers today are reporting gossip like "Xue Tianwang's lightning-fast joining Huayi Brothers" or "Queen Ji Xuan suspected of marrying into a wealthy family," while only briefly mentioning the press conference itself. Xingchen spent money and effort, even hosting a lavish banquet for the media, only to end up with a tiny page, essentially benefiting others.

"The son of a big tycoon is indeed rich and powerful. Compared to him, Xingchen is nothing."

Why do I get the feeling that you're gloating a little?

"Do you want Xing Manzi to be all over the headlines today?"

The *Suwen* remained noncommittal.

Xing Manzi really went all out with her outfit last night, but unfortunately, it wasn't big enough. News about A-list celebrities is always more interesting than Star Entertainment signing some nobody.

"Huayi now has a large conglomerate backing it up, and it's estimated that it will only be a matter of time before it swallows up Xingchen."

Previously, Xiao Rong's father, Xiao Zhiyuan, was a football enthusiast, so he acquired a football club. Now, the weekly magazine jokingly refers to Xiao Rong's acquisition of Huayi Brothers as "The father plays football, the son plays with celebrities."

Suwen had to seriously consider Ye Zi's suggestion. If Huayi Brothers really had such powerful backing, then choosing Huayi would definitely be wiser for her. After all, it's good to have a powerful backer. Xiao Shao had connections in both the political and business circles. In the entertainment industry, what you fear most is spending money and effort only to have it all go down the drain by a single "not approved" statement from the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television.

Once she made up her mind, she immediately called Ye Zi. Ye Zi happened to be at the company and said, "Okay, then come over later to pick up the registration form, and I'll show you around the company while I'm at it."

Huayi Brothers' company building is actually a newly built building, but Ye Zi said that the new owner is not satisfied with the hardware and software facilities in the building and wants to build more. The area where the parking lot is located is currently fenced off and the foundation is being dug. In the future, all the parking lots will be built underground, and an underground swimming pool and an underground gym will also be built to provide the artists with a place for entertainment and leisure, so that they don't only come back to the company when there is something going on, and don't not show up for a week if there is nothing else to do.

Su Wen thought to herself, "No wonder he's the young master of a commercial real estate group; he's built the company like a mansion."

Ye Zi pointed her out the way. The first floor was the cafeteria and activity room. The second floor was the artist department. Some big-name artists had their own private practice rooms, but most newcomers and artists who had just debuted and were still unknown shared one large practice room. Since Su Wen was now considered a reserve force for Huayi Brothers, Ye Zi focused on explaining to her the usage time and precautions for the practice room.

The third floor houses professional studios, including the most advanced recording equipment in China and post-production editing rooms. This is where well-known talent scouts in the industry gather.

The fourth floor houses the offices and meeting rooms for the company's senior management.

After reviewing the documents, Ye Zi handed her a stack of materials, including the registration form for the competition and a contract.

Ye Zi explained, "You're currently on a trainee contract. Once you pass this competition, it will become a full-fledged artist contract. You'll be able to come and go from the company freely, just like other artists. They'll give you a membership card then. The dance teachers, vocal teachers, and acting teachers in the company are all very approachable. Come over whenever you have time. You can learn a lot of practical skills here that you won't find in school."

Ye Zi's words were incredibly persuasive, and they made Su Wen's blood boil. Without much hesitation, she neatly signed her name at the bottom of the contract.

Ye Zi squinted at her, and when she looked up, she extended her hand in a friendly manner: "It's a pleasure to work with you."

Through this day's observations, Suwen learned that Ye Zi was the company's top agent, managing two A-list stars, one of whom was Ji Xuan. These days, it's not uncommon for agents to have a string of up-and-coming stars under their wing; as long as one achieves even a little fame, they've established their status in the industry. It's rare to find someone like Ye Zi who can manage two A-list stars simultaneously. And her saying "pleasant collaboration"—was she implying that one day Suwen would also be working for her?

Thinking this, Suwen grasped her hand in return: "It's a pleasure working with you."

Suwen waited nervously backstage. The performers on stage were from the group before them.

The elimination round, narrowing down the contestants from 50 to 20, was recorded in a studio. The 50 contestants who passed the preliminary rounds were divided into ten groups by drawing lots, and they took turns performing on stage. Three contestants from each group were eliminated, and the remaining two advanced to the top 20. In addition to their skills, luck in the group assignments was also a major factor.