Chapter 10: Upside Down World, Want to Terminate the Contract? Pay Up!

The people in the office stared at each other, stunned. After years of acting as capitalists, this was their first time encountering such an arrogant "workhorse."

Zhou Zhengyi’s face was grim as he gave a curt nod. Xu Qingfeng still had two months left on his contract. The company had originally intended to hold onto him and wait for an opportunity to force a renewal, but now that contract had become a parasitic plaster they couldn't shake off.

Regardless, they had to distance themselves completely. And it had to be Xu Qingfeng who initiated the split; otherwise, the blame would still fall on them.

Li Deshou looked at Zhou Zhengyi’s gesture and spoke into the phone, "Fine. The company will give you 500,000, and you will post a public statement terminating our contract."

"500,000? Are you trying to get rid of a beggar? I’m busy, I’m hanging up."

"Wait, wait, don’t hang up! Everything is negotiable!" Li Deshou panicked. This guy Xu Qingfeng was like a lunatic; if he hung up now, there was no telling when he’d pick up again, and by then, the opportunity would be long gone.

Xu Qingfeng replied, "My time is limited. I don't have the patience to haggle with you. You’d better come up with a number that shows some sincerity."

Zhou Zhengyi frowned and held up one finger. Li Deshou understood. "One million."

"Are you an idiot? Who cares about your one million?" Xu Qingfeng retorted.

Li Deshou was furious. "Don't look down on one million! Do you still think you're a star? You think you can just make a million whenever you want? Wake up! You think you still have a future in the entertainment industry?"

"I didn't realize you were so filial, worrying about your 'father's' affairs. But this has nothing to do with you—one million is out of the question."

"Then how much do you want?"

"I’ll give you a number: 10 million."

Li Deshou’s voice shot up. "How much? Are you out of your mind? Are you robbing us?"

Xu Qingfeng said languidly, "Hey, you can’t put it like that. When I wanted to terminate the contract earlier, the breach of penalty you quoted was 200 million. You said it was stipulated by the contract, and I didn't even accuse you of robbery then. Why are you getting so worked up over 10 million now? Besides, I’m giving you the 'friendship price'."

"Keep dreaming! 10 million is impossible!" Li Deshou roared.

"Look, I never forced you to terminate the contract. Since there are only two months left, you can just wait it out. What if everyone ends up believing you? What if the company manages to survive these two months? Right, Mr. Zhou?" Xu Qingfeng directly addressed Zhou Zhengyi. A small fry like Li Deshou wasn't qualified to discuss termination settlements.

Zhou Zhengyi let out a cold hum and took the phone. "10 million is indeed impossible. If it comes to it, we’ll just announce the termination ourselves. The effect will be the same."

"I’m sure you would, but do you think Chen He and his crowd will believe that?" Xu Qingfeng was unbothered.

Everyone thought he was insane, yet many still suspected a conspiracy—a drama staged by Xinghui Entertainment. The logic was sound: a traffic star like Xu Qingfeng wouldn't dare attack someone like Chen He unless he had some backing. And where would that backing come from? The answer was obvious: Xinghui Entertainment. As a leading agency, they certainly had the power to go head-to-head with Chen He.

Zhou Zhengyi was silent for a moment. "5 million. It’ll be in your account within five minutes, but you must post the termination statement immediately, declaring that all your previous actions were your own and had nothing to do with the company."

"Chairman Zhou is generous. A small piece of advice: people like Li Deshou are a waste of air while alive and a waste of land when dead. Keeping him around is a waste, too. I think the bottom of the Huangpu River would suit him well."

"Xu Qingfeng, you!" Li Deshou exploded.

Zhou Zhengyi glanced at him. "You don't need to worry about company matters."

The call ended. Within three minutes, five million appeared in Xu Qingfeng’s account. He smiled. It seemed Chen He had put significant pressure on Zhou Zhengyi for them to pay five million just to get him to cut ties.

"This money is a bit hot to handle, but fortunately, it’s me." Anyone else might worry if they’d live long enough to spend it. But Xu Qingfeng was a lone wolf—no dependents, no weaknesses. He wasn't a fool; he wouldn't have triggered such a massive scandal without a contingency. Even if the system made him a superhuman, it could only protect him. What about his family? Could a superhuman with a weakness still be a hero? He couldn't guard them forever.

Meanwhile, Zhao Kaixin was scrolling through Weibo, feeling numb. In less than two days, Xu Qingfeng had thoroughly offended Xinghui Entertainment and Chen He. Just thinking about it was suffocating.

He hadn't been able to reach Xu Qingfeng all day, but even if he had, there was nothing he could do. He was just a star; all he could do was pray that Xu Qingfeng could survive this disaster without causing more trouble.

After receiving the money, Xu Qingfeng also received the electronic termination contract from Li Deshou. He never expected that the final shackle binding him would be resolved in such a bizarre way, and that they would even pay him five million to do it.

He believed in holding up his end of the bargain. He opened his Weibo editor and tapped out a post:

[The entertainment industry is so heartless. When they need you, you’re their "father"; when they don’t, they can’t wait to cut all ties.]

[I hereby solemnly state that I have terminated my contract with Xinghui Entertainment. My Weibo posts from the last two days have nothing to do with the company; they were entirely my own personal actions.]

[I know you’re anxious, "Animal" Chen. You must have gone and threatened the company, right? See? I told you that you just go around targeting whoever you want. With a termination clause like that, what actress could possibly resist you? I really have to give you a thumbs up for such shameless behavior.]

[I wanted to leave Xinghui long ago, but the trash company said I owed them 200 million in damages per the contract. I don't have that kind of money—after all, I never learned how to evade taxes from Boss Bo, nor did I learn how to skillfully spread my legs like Miao Qing. Fortunately, thanks to that threat from "Animal" Chen, hey, the company terminated my contract directly and even paid me five million.]

[Folks, who has ever seen such a thing? I’ve only ever heard of stars being skinned alive by their companies during contract terminations, never of a company paying the star. What a bizarre tale. Thanks, everyone.]

Attached to the post was a picture of the termination notice, stamped with the official seal of Xinghui Entertainment.

Zhou Zhengyi had been staring at Weibo, and seeing Xu Qingfeng post as promised, he finally exhaled. Once the ties were severed, the matter was effectively over.

Sure enough, once the post went live, the online conspiracy theories collapsed.

"I told you, Xu Qingfeng is crazy, but Xinghui wouldn't go crazy with him."

"The world turned upside down; first time I’ve seen a company pay a star."

"Incredible. This move truly opened my eyes."

"Does this mean other stars wanting to leave can learn from this?"

"Do you have a death wish? You’d dare try this?"