Chapter 7: 7

Chapter 7: Gu Yan, don’t think about her, the next one will be better!

After eating the durian and ventilating the room, it was already 10pm when Gu Yan and Qi Xi left the firm.

Because Qi Xi’s mouth was stilled filled with the aftertaste of durian, she decided to go to the convenience store to buy some chewing gum.

Instead of leaving, Gu Yan glanced at Qi Xi before following her.

“You don’t have to accompany me… you can go first.”

Gu Yan glanced at Qi Xi, “Do you own the convenience store?”

…

Okay, he’s just going to the store out of his own will.

There was no one in the store at this point, and the cashier seemed drowsy as well. After Qi Xi picked up chewing gum, she began to pick out snacks. When she heard the sound of the door opening, she subconsciously swept her eyes towards the voice, seeing a somewhat familiar pair of eyes…

Drooping triangular eyes.

The visitor was wearing a mask and hat. Underneath his disguise, was dark skin, and his body was also slightly heavier. The woman who walked in after him was wearing a mask as well, and her skin was lighter and more beautiful. Her long legs were highlighted from her stilettos, and she was almost a head taller than the man standing next to her.

The man quickly pulled something from the counter, paid, and left. The entire process was quick, but Qi Xi noticed some type of ambiguity between the two, especially considering how they exchanged looks with each other.

Why does the man seem so familiar?

After the man left, Qi Xi suddenly realized.

Isn’t that man Ai Xiang? Shouldn’t he be overseas now? Because she had scoped out his information online due to her curiosity and watched his interviews, she realized, no wonder he seems so familiar.

Ai Xiang, who should be overseas right now, appeared at a convenience store, late at night with another woman. No matter how subtle he thought he was, he was still found out.

Qi Xi quickly shared her discovery with Gu Yan, “Do you think Ai Xiang is cheating? I’m worried about Chen Xiang. I actually felt something was weird when I received the courier with the contract, but I was debating whether I should say something. Chen Xiang…”

Although Gu Yan appeared to come to the convenience story to buy things, he still didn’t have anything in his hands. After listening to Qi Xi’s words, he lightly said, “There’s usually secrets between a husband and wife, and sometimes space is needed. He may be busy with a novel project. Besides, even if he came to the convenience store with a good-looking woman, there’s no hard evidence to prove those two have an inappropriate relationship with each other.”

This was why Qi Xi hesitated so much.

Yet, her conscious was still a little unhappy. She always felt as though Chen Xiang paved the way for Ai Xiang’s success. That her sacrifice made him strong.

While hesitating, Gu Yan seemed to have decided on what he should buy. Qi Xi watched him walk up to the cashier. He said something, and then Qi Xi watched as the cashier handed Gu Yan a box of condoms.

Gu Yan came to buy condoms in the middle of the night?!

Didn’t the girl you like reject you? How did your nightlife become so rich that you need to buy condoms? Unless…

Qi Xi stared at Gu Yan with wide eyes, “So that girl of yours is finally yours? The misunderstanding is resolved? If it isn’t, I can explain to her to further correct your name. It might help your relationship!”

Perhaps she shouldn’t have mentioned it. Gu Yan’s face darkened as he probably remembered the graduation ceremony again, “No need, the misunderstanding has been resolved.”

It’s resolved?! That’s great!

As long as Gu Yan’s love life is good, it’s possible to become friends with him in no time!

Before Qi Xi could congratulate Gu Yan on his success, she saw Gu Yan scoff, “She knows it’s a misunderstanding, but she still doesn’t like me.”

This… this is bad indeed.

“Then why did you buy this,” she asked cautiously, “Is it because you want to get drunk and indulge yourself late at night?”

Gu Yan’s face sunk as he was speechless, “W-who do you think I bought this for?”

“Who did you buy it for?” she asked fearlessly.

“For you!” he said angrily.

T-this is not good… Gu Yan what do you mean by this? Are you trying to hint at something?

Qi Xi was in a state of shock as she heard Gu Yan continue, “I told the cashier I wanted to buy the same thing the man bought just now.”

Stunned, she finally reacted, “So the cashier gave you this?”

“Well, the cashier mistook me as a young man who was embarrassed to ask for it directly, so he didn’t doubt it and just handed it over.”

So that’s what happened!

Ai Xiang had just bought condoms, so Qi Xi’s guess was probably not wrong. Ai Xiang was indeed cheating.

Gu Yan nodded his head, “You can probably confirm your suspicion now. I think there is a problem.”

“Gu Yan you are so witty!” Qi Xi said sincerely.

As soon as he heard her words, he became angry, “Didn’t you just say I wanted to indulge myself.”

This must his anger from not being together with the girl he likes.

Qi Xi immediately patted Gu Yan’s shoulder, “Since the misunderstanding at the graduation ceremony has been resolved, and this woman still hasn’t accepted you, it’s probably safe to say this person has poor vision. Maybe she’s blind, even.”

Gu Yan glanced at Qi Xi, “Yeah.”

He actually agreed with me!

Comforting friends in a time of need is a great way to improve their relationship, so Qi Xi immediately continued, “It’s okay, Gu Yan. You are such a talented person with a bright future. Don’t think about her anymore. The next girl in your life will be even better!”

It’s a pity that Qi Xi wasn’t able to predict the volatility of Gu Yan’s emotions. Just previously, he and she had scolded this girl’s poor vision, and now Gu Yan was becoming angry again.

The man glared at her, “I won’t change my crush. Can you afford to handle that?” After saying those words, he threw the box of condoms into the trash can, storming away with an angry expression.

Qi Xi was simply stunned. How can Gu Yan be so stubborn? What if you and her never get together?

Fine, don’t change. Don’t change your crush at all. It’s not like it’s me.

Though she was speechless, Qi Xi quickly forgot about this and focused more on how she should break the news to Chen Xiang.

Maybe it was a coincidence, but the next day Chen Xiang brought some homemade biscuits because of the successful partnership. Since Gu Xuehan was out at court, Qi Xi welcomed her.

The two chatted for a while, and right when it appeared Chen Xiang was going to leave, Qi Xi pulled out a book she bought from the bookstore this morning, “Ms. Chen, could I trouble you to ask Mr. Ai Xiang to sign this for me? My friend is a big fan and hopes I could get his autograph.”

Chen Xiang smiled back, without doubting her intentions.

Qi Xi also smiled back and naturally added, “In fact, my friend and I accidentally ran into him last night, but we were so nervous at the time so we couldn’t ask for the autograph then. Fortunately, you came today, so please bring the book to Mr. Ai Xiang.”

Chen Xiang frowned, “You saw him last night?”

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“Well, it was when we went to the convenience store nearby. Maybe he had just finished work and came with a staff worker. But he left immediately after buying something.”

The expression on Chen Xiang’s face became solemn, “Did he bring a woman or a man?”

Qi Xi smiled, “A female staff member.”

Chen Xiang’s face showed some bitterness, but she was still able to muster a reluctant smile towards Qi Xi, “That’s probably his assistant. Maybe he was in a hurry last night. Let’s leave it.”

Qi Xi knew that Chen Xiang didn’t mean those words. She no longer maintained her cool composure.

Qi Xi was smart enough to pretend to be unaware of the incident, and it was just enough to attract Chen Xiang’s attention. The convenience store had 24 hour surveillance, so if she truly inquired, she would definitely find clues. If she didn’t investigate, then Chen Xiang would simply turn the blind eye to save face.

Soon enough, Qi Xi found her answer. It turned out that Chen Xiang was unwilling to turn the blind eye, because 3 days later she returned to the company to meet with Gu Xuehan.

“Ai Xiang cheated, so I want a divorce. Hope you can fight so I can get as much property as I can.”

Chen Xiang’s face was pale and tired. She suddenly looked much older with her eyes full of resentment, “He is where he is today because of me. Fengxian was also written by me. He can’t write emotional dialogues, so I worked on all of that and even worked on several female characters. Even though, he treats me like this. Now that he has money, I didn’t expect him to cheat on me.”

Ai Xiang’s incident seemed to have hit Chen Xiang quite hard. People were usually calm and restrained, but now nothing was of the sort. She was complaining about her unhappiness because of the marriage.

Chen Xiang frowned, “Do you know who he cheated with? It’s my high school best friend! Turns out that I kept a wolf in the house!”

“She and I met in art school, but because she wasn’t as talented, she couldn’t score a big opportunity after graduation. She did a few simple jobs to live her life, so I supported her because I couldn’t see her live like that after graduation.”

Chen Xiang’s voice broke as if the matter was very painful to her, “Ai Xiang’s Fengxian was just sold for a film production at the time. The director was dissatisfied and couldn’t find a reliable screenwriter so he invited Ai Xiang to write the script. That’s how he was able to make connections in the industry. Then I asked him to help my friend. It was pure coincidence that the third female lead was not yet cast, so I asked for my friend to get that role.

“My original intention was to support her. As my junior, I thought she lived a hard life, so I wanted to help where I could. And, I also felt nervous around the crew. I couldn’t be with Ai Xiang and look after the kids, so I felt my junior could help look after him when I was not there.”

At this point, tears rolled down Chen Xiang’s face, “I didn’t expect her to betray me like this! She worked hard, and when I asked her to take care of Ai Xiang, I didn’t expect she would take care of him in bed.”

Qi Xi sympathized with Chen Xiang and tried to comfort her, but Gu Xuehan interrupted, “Women who get cheated by others usually cry, but it still won’t change anything. Let’s analyze all of Ai Xiang’s assets to see what we can do to help you in the divorce.”

“We have two properties in total, but both of them were gifts from my family. It’s registered in both our names, because initially I had paid the loan in the early days, but after the success of Fengxian, we have joint ownership of the property even though I was the one who paid it…”

“What about the copyright income for the book?”

The man from the previous film and television company had said Ai Xiang had taken out the money to buy a house and that house’s asset value had gone up.

Chen Xiang lowered her head, “That was fully paid and bought in his parents’ name. It was because the deed tax was high at the time…”

Gu Xuehan asked about other forms of income, but unfortunately Chen Xiang did not know much. She only knows he opened a studio and wanted to invest in his own film and television projects. Because of this, she had no understanding of the flow of funds.

However, Chen Xiang took out a USB flash drive, “Since I suspected Ai Xiang of cheating, I installed a surveillance camera in my home and filled a video of him bringing in my junior and kissing her while I was away. It is enough to prove he’s cheating? That’s he’s the one at fault in the marriage, and that he should be the one leaving the house?”

Not just Gu Xuehan, even Qi Xi wanted to sigh.

If you don’t know much about your husband’s assets, how can you talk about pushing him out of the house?

“Yes, if one of the parties cheats, there is some consideration of property during the divorce, but this entirely depends on the judge. It’s hard to see where the judgment lies. In the past, when there were cases between full-time wives and wealthy businessman, the marital property was gained because of the businessman’s income. If the businessman gives up all his property because of cheating, it would be considered unfair. So in the end, most times it gets split 50:50.”

When Chen Xiang heard this, she didn’t seem to be greatly affected, just just grit her teeth, “It’s fine if I don’t get the money. In fact, I don’t want his money at all. I just want him to be nice to me. Instead of money, I want to see both of them be punished. I want to expose them so his fans see what type of person he truly is!”

“No matter how you expose a cheating man with no feelings, the impact is only temporary. There are so many hot topics on the internet every day, and soon enough there will be new topics to discuss. Time will be enough to clean his image. The only bargaining chip you have is the evidence of his cheating, and if you revealed that quickly, you would lose everything,” Gu Xuehan calmly explained. “The single most manner to beat a man is to get all his property during the divorce. To let him know that your relationship is over.”

Her voice was calm and rational, “Even if you die for a man, he won’t remember you. But if you take away a man’s money, he will remember you for a lifetime.”

Men are more realistic than women. Even if Chen Xiang was to stab her junior’s heart, or if she committed suicide, Ai Xiang would only suffer for a short while before finding a replacement. With his money, he is sure to find a new woman, and when that woman gives birth, everything would be forgotten. For a man, the most irreplaceable thing is his money and his pride.

Qi Xi didn’t know if Chen Xiang fully comprehended that, but eventually she and Gu Xuehan signed a contract with Chen Xiang hoping Gu Xuehan could settle the case so she won more property in the end.

As soon as she left, Gu Xuehan assigned Qi Xi and Gu Yan a few tasks, “According to Chen Xiang’s clues, you should inquire about Ai Xiang’s assets and income, especially starting with the person he cheated on. If Ai Xiang is using any money to win over the girl, we need to keep track of it. That money belongs within the ‘property’ category in this marriage. As long as we have evidence, Chen Xiang can get back half of everything.”

Though this was just a small case for Gu Xuehan, it was Qi Xi’s first formal case. Therefore, she attaches great importance to the case, and even Gu Yan does the came.

They both went out to collect the evidence, almost as if they were competing with each other, and they successfully handed over their work to Gu Xuehan a week later.

“These are Ai Xiang’s assets that need to be sorted out. This includes the gifts he gave his mistress. Seems he bought a house and car, but it is difficult to understand the revenue his studio is generating. Once Chen Xiang files for divorce, Ai Xiang will definitely lose some of his profits from the studio. So, if he is unwilling to divide the property, he may even bring up a few unpaid debts. We may need a professional audit team to settle this part.”

Gu Xuehan glanced at the list submitted by Qi Xi and Gu Yan, “Well done. Let me ask a few questions. How would your proceed with the case if we use the cheating video Chen Xiang provided?”

Qi Xi thought about it for a second, “Well, we are within the scope of law. Because it happened in their property, Chen Xiang can show the evidence without worry. If they can’t mutually agree upon a settlement, we can proceed with the case, and according to the circumstances, this video can be used as evidence that Ai Xiang is at fault for this divorce. In this manner, we can do our best to negotiate for more property.”

Gu Xuehan nodded her head, “This is the typical way to deal with the case. Gu Yan, do you have anything to add?”

Gu Yan looked at Gu Xuehan, “I think it’s possible for us to sue the mistress at the same time. Though it may be difficult to obtain clear evidence, by doing this, we might be able to get her to return the money by providing proofs of any payments or gifts. This could help Chen Xiang win the case. And, suing the mistress can make her mess up. She would become distracted, and there’s a high probability she will start fighting with Ai Xiang, so it is possible for him to pay more concessions to end this case even quicker.”

Gu Xuehan smiled, “As newbies, your ideas are not too bad. I see you two have put in a lot of effort, especially with the property statements.” Though Gu Xuehan did not confirm how she would deal with the case, she just looked at her watch, “Chen Xiang will come soon, so I will let her know of the plan.”

Almost as soon as Gu Xuehan finished speaking, there was a call from the front desk.

Gu Xuehan brought Qi Xi and Gu Yan into the conference room.

Gu Xuehan had always been neat and tidy, so she immediately showed Chen Xiang the property list obtained from the scavenging. Just when Qi Xi was ready to explain part of the plan, Gu Xuehand completely changed the gears.

“With the surveillance video we obtained legally through your home, and with the recent copyrights issue, we can completely avoid the complicated process of going to court. If we negotiate and reach an agreement, you can divide the property in the way you see fit.”

Not just Qi Xi, even Gu Yan’s eyes widened with surprise.

Isn’t Gu Xuehan just exaggerating? Don’t they say lawyers shouldn’t exaggerate the results of their cases? Only by using these evidences in court could they tear Ai Xiang’s reputation. But a negotiation?

Gu Xuehan appeared quite confident. Under the unbelievable gaze between Qi Xi and Gu Yan, she pulled out a copy of the film and television licensing contract for Fengxian.

“Pay attention to Article 15 explaining the liability for breach of contract. ‘Before signing this contract to the end of the first announcement, if Party B [the author] commits crimes, illegal acts, violates public order, participates in pornography, gambles, uses drugs, participates in extramarital affairs, and or other negative news, it would be considered a serious violation of social morality and would appear on the national news, publications, radio, and television. If the behavior of Party B damages the image of Party A, Party A has the right to terminate the contract and require Party B to refund the copyright fee and compensate Party A of all economic losses, including but not limited to the total investment of the adaption work, the cost of lawyers, etc.”

Gu Xuehan smiled knowingly, “Now that Fengxian is on air, if you use the cheating video to publicly condemn Ai Xiang and his mistress, I’m afraid the impact of it would be very big. It would create a negative impact on Fengxian, and if the film and television company seeks reimbursement, do you think Ai Xiang would be able to afford it?

“What’s more, as long as he writes in the future, once the truth is revealed, do you think future projects would be sold as easily? Even if they are sold, the film and television companies will definitely evaluate the risk of the negativity and lower the copyright prices. Some may even bar him, so in short, the impact could be quite huge.”

Gu Xuehan looked at Chen Xiang, “Luckily, you can negotiate with him before the official broadcast of Fengxian. As long as lawyers intervene, we can negotiate and not go through extortion. We can absolutely focus on this clause and let Ai Xiang give up more property to protect his future career.”

Gu Xuehan said this as Qi Xi and Gu Yan realized how integrated legal rights could be. All these fragmented evidences could serve as turning points.

Because Fengxian’s copyright was sold a few years ago, before Ai Xiang’s income took off, Qi Xi and Gu Yan did not pay much attention to the details. Instead, they just focused on his studio’s finances.

Qi Xi only thought of standing in Chen Xiang’s shoes, using all of Chen Xiang’s strength to fight against Ai Xiang. But she didn’t expect that using such an approach would completely crush them. Previously, the richer Ai Xiang used targeted actions of concealing party to weaken Chen Xiang, but now that the corporate industry was involved, Ai Xiang could simply do nothing.

Gu Xuehan looked over at Qi Xi and Gu Yan, “The contract for Fengxian was made about 2 years ago because one of the leading actors violated the law. Because of this, the project, despite investing hundreds of millions, was unable to be aired. If the artists continued to breach moral trust, companies would not be able to cope with the losses. So the terms and conditions became more strict. I reviewed Fengxian’s contract and found that this clause could be beneficial for us.”

Qi Xi’s heart rose with admiration for Gu Xuehan.

Gu Xuehan was able to be promoted as partner at such a young age because of this quick thinking!

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