184: Chapter 179 Yu Heng gave the most money.

"He didn't say?" Yu Heng leaned forward. "Then Jasmine must have miscommunicated. Now that you know, are you still filming?"

Lin Yu's fingers tightened. She looked at Yu Heng with a hint of defensiveness in her eyes, as if she were weighing her options.

"How much exposure?" she asked.

"No lower limit," Yu Heng smiled. "Since you don't even have to show your face, of course the scale of the shoot has to be larger."

"Then I can't do it," Lin Yu stood up to leave. "This isn't what I expected."

"Are you sure?" Yu Heng didn't stand up, sitting there with a smile. "General notices don't pay this well. In a place like Tang City, five or six hundred a day is considered high. For three hours of shooting, you'll earn more than they do in half a month."

"But I don't plan on earning money this way," Lin Yu said as she picked up her bag. "I'm leaving."

"Lin Yu," Yu Heng called out to her, "you're being a bit too reserved."

Lin Yu stopped and turned back to look at him with a frown. "How do you know my name?"

Yu Heng smiled and said, "We've met before. I once invited you to be a Streamer."

Lin Yu's eyes narrowed slightly, then she gave a cold laugh. "So it was you. No wonder."

"No wonder?" Yu Heng frowned upon hearing this. "I don't think you're in a position to say that. You're the one who wants to earn my money."

"I'm sorry, I won't be earning this money," Lin Yu said coldly.

"Five thousand," Yu Heng said, seeing her about to leave again, suddenly feeling playful. "Five thousand an hour, with a minimum of four hours. I'll only take photos, and there will be no physical contact with you throughout the entire process."

Lin Yu had already reached the door, but she still stopped in her tracks.

"Are you serious?" Lin Yu turned back and said, "Don't joke about this kind of thing."

"Black and white," Yu Heng said. "If you're worried, it doesn't matter; we'll be signing a cooperation agreement anyway."

"Four hours... twenty thousand yuan?" She repeated the figure.

"Yes, twenty thousand." Yu Heng leaned back into the sofa. "Paid in full on the day the shooting is completed."

"Only taking photos?" she confirmed once more.

Yu Heng felt like laughing. Was this woman that short on money right now?

"Only taking photos," Yu Heng replied again. "I'm doing publicity, not trying to go to prison. What else would I do besides taking photos?"

"Then when will we shoot?" Lin Yu said. "I need to see if I have time."

"You set the time, as long as it's before Friday," Yu Heng said. "Four hours isn't long; we can even do it in the evening."

"Then let's do tomorrow at 5 PM. I'll come over after class," Lin Yu said.

"Fine," Yu Heng smiled. "I'll send you an electronic version of the agreement. If there are no issues, we'll sign it on-site tomorrow."

"Okay," Lin Yu nodded. "Then I'm leaving."

Lin Yu pushed the door open and left. Yu Heng leaned back into the sofa, picked up his phone, and opened Zhou Mengqi's WeChat.

Yu Heng: We're done talking. She's gone back to look at the contract.

Zhou Mengqi replied almost instantly: How was it? Did she agree?

Yu Heng: Sort of. The person you found is quite good.

A smile curled at the corner of his mouth. This girl, who used to be so aloof, had now fallen into his hands. It was quite interesting.

Zhou Mengqi sent a giggling emoji: Of course. That girl is quite pretty, isn't she?

Yu Heng: She is pretty, but she's not showing her face, so it's not very useful.

Zhou Mengqi: That's true. It still depends on whether she's pretty down there or not.

Yu Heng couldn't help but laugh when he saw this message. Speaking of which, Bai Xinran's was still prettier.

Yu Heng: Yeah. Does her boyfriend know she's taking this kind of job?

Zhou Mengqi: How would I know... but he probably doesn't, right? Would he still let her come if he knew?

Yu Heng didn't reply further. It didn't matter whether he knew or not; that was a problem Lin Yu had to handle herself.

His goal was clear: get the publicity photos that met the requirements and observe Lin Yu as a person.

He tossed his phone aside and closed his eyes.

This weekend was the Ownership Ceremony with Bai Xinran, and everything that needed to be prepared was ready.

The ceremony itself was a formality, but formalities were important, especially for someone with Bai Xinran's personality. A process full of ritual would increase her sense of belonging and conviction.

In a way, Bai Xinran was the one he valued most. After all, it wasn't easy to encounter someone with such talent; he couldn't let it go to waste.

"A Ling!" Yu Heng shouted. "What are we having for lunch!"

"I'm here," Bai Xinran poked her head out from the room. "What does Master want to eat?"

"Anything! Just make it in a bit."

As for a puppy, you have to call out to it often when there's nothing else to do.

——

Lin Yu walked out of the Villa area. As the cold wind blew, she realized she had actually broken into a sweat just now.

She walked slowly toward the school, her steps a bit shaky.

Her family was originally just an ordinary one. Allowing her to study music in high school had already been quite a burden.

Her university tuition was still covered by student loans, and now that her father had had an accident on the construction site, it had turned into debt.

She had never thought she would have to rely on this kind of work to earn money. She studied music performance because she wanted to appear on the silver screen one day, on the television, not to take these kinds of private photos.

But she really needed money now, and she needed it fast.

The phone in her bag vibrated. It was Xu Hao calling. She stared at the screen for a moment before answering.

"Hello?" she murmured.

"Xiaoyu, are you out of class?" Xu Hao's background was a bit noisy. "Have you eaten?"

"I've eaten," Lin Yu said. "What about you?"

"Just finished a delivery, I'll eat in a bit." Xu Hao paused. "That... didn't I tutor two students in math last weekend? Plus this week's food delivery, I've put together three thousand yuan. I'll transfer it to you first. On your end... is it time to pay Uncle's hospitalization fees again?"

Lin Yu's throat tightened. Her father had fallen from a scaffold and had been lying in the hospital for half a month.

The construction site was dragging its feet, and tens of thousands had already been put into medical expenses. Her family didn't have much money to begin with, and now they even owed relatives.

"No need." She moved the phone to her other ear. "You keep it."

"I have enough." Xu Hao lowered his voice a bit. "Take it, why are you being so polite with me?"

"It's not about being polite." Lin Yu stopped walking. "I really can't take this money."

"Why?"

"The money you earn is also hard-earned," Lin Yu said. "No matter how difficult things are at home, it hasn't come to the point where I need to use your money."

In the year or so they had been dating, Lin Yu had never spent a single cent of his.

She had always felt that women could build their own careers through their own abilities and could live very well on their own.

But now she felt a bit defeated. She realized she had no ability at all, to the point where she had to use her body to cash out.

The other end of the phone was silent for a few seconds.

"Then you..." Xu Hao's voice was muffled. "Where are you going to get the money? That part-time job teaching piano only has two lessons a week; it's barely enough for your living expenses."

"I have a way," Lin Yu said.

"What way?"

"Don't worry about it." Lin Yu's tone hardened slightly. "Let's leave it at that. Go get back to work."

She hung up the phone and stuffed it back into her bag.

She had a way. What way could she possibly have?

For someone studying music performance, there were only so many ways to cash out.

She had to admit, Yu Heng offered the most money.