Chen Cheng nodded noncommittally, "Mm."

He smiled, "The resources at an entertainment company have been declining year after year, and they are forcing new artists on the public, leading to constant conflicts in collaboration. So, we should just part ways."

Sister Ling smacked her lips, "You might not know this, but in our industry, the most important thing is actually resources."

Chen Cheng's expression remained calm, "I am rich!"

"..." Sister Ling was a bit dumbfounded; she seemed unable to refute that.

He raised an eyebrow and glanced at Qiao Jingjing, who was playing with the child, "Have you talked to Jingjing about this?"

"Not yet, for the time being."

Sister Ling was stunned for a moment, "Jingjing still has four years left on her contract. If she terminates it now, the penalty will be a huge sum."

"Jingjing might not be willing."

Chen Cheng waved his hand, "Money is not an issue."

Chen Cheng didn't know much about the entertainment industry, but he knew a thing or two about breach of contract liabilities.

For a top-tier artist like Qiao Jingjing, the penalty for breach of contract could reach two to three times her annual income.

However, such high penalties usually wouldn't be supported by the courts.

The final penalty is usually reduced to 30% - 50% of the annual income, multiplied by the number of remaining contract years.

In other words, if Qiao Jingjing were to terminate her remaining four-year contract, the penalty would still amount to 1.2 - 2 times her annual income.

Sister Ling smiled awkwardly. To the person in front of her, this "petty cash" in the entertainment industry really wasn't a problem at all.

Sister Ling pondered for a moment, organizing her words, "Jingjing is the cash cow for an entertainment company. If Jingjing terminates her contract early..."

"an entertainment company might use some tactics to make it difficult to terminate, such as tampering with tax records, leaking rumors to the press, and so on."

"This might cause Jingjing to bear hidden costs, such as loss of reputation, loss of fans, and the like."

"The actual cost of breach of contract will be higher than the penalty on paper."

Chen Cheng nodded gently; there is truly nothing new under the sun.

Tampering with tax records is actually a double-edged sword that hurts the enemy while also causing self-inflicted damage.

For an agency, tax issues are usually just a slap on the wrist.

It's completely different for an artist; having tax issues is equivalent to a death sentence for their career.

Moreover, the very interesting thing is that even if taxes have already been filed for several years, they can still be amended.

The room for manipulation here is just too vast. It can ruin someone without any repercussions.

"Sister Ling, you should start preparing. As for Jingjing, I'll talk to her when I have some free time."

Sister Ling was taken aback and didn't agree immediately.

Although she knew that Chen Cheng was a powerful backer, at the end of the day, she was just an intermediary, a broker.

It was impossible for her to overstep and make decisions for Qiao Jingjing.

"Then I shall await the good news from Chairman Chen," Sister Ling agreed quickly, but in her heart, she didn't plan to take immediate action.

Chen Cheng smiled, not minding her thoughts.

By conveying his intentions to her, Chen Cheng's goal had already been achieved.

Actually, there was also a simple and crude method: directly acquire an entertainment company.

However, that wasn't Chen Cheng's original intention.

There are very few entertainment companies that are truly profitable. It's a business that Chen Cheng doesn't really value right now.

Letting Qiao Jingjing become independent was just because he didn't want her to be tied down by various commercial commitments.

So that she would have more time to study matters of the next generation with him.

Less than an hour later, the takeout hot pot arrived. Several employees from the studio also arrived.

One administrative assistant who doubled as the accountant, one PR person, one media operator, and one fan engagement manager—they were all young women.

Chen Cheng glanced at Qiao Jingjing sitting next to him again. Well, the whole studio, except for the driver, was truly an army of women.

And Chen Cheng could also tell. The studio didn't even have a business development person. Except for Sister Ling, the manager, the business side was completely controlled by the agency.

The four young women whispered to each other, eyeing Chen Cheng. "Who is this?" Some recognized him, while others had never seen him before.

Most people don't read financial news. Sister Ling coughed twice, reminding them, "Ahem~ mind your image."

Qiao Jingjing had a smile on her lips and waved her hand, "It's okay."

She looked at the employees of the studio and cleared her throat, "Ahem~ let me introduce you. This person here used to be my high school classmate and desk mate."

"And now, he is my boyfriend, Chen Cheng."

"Ooh~~~" The women immediately started teasing, chiming in, "So it's our brother-in-law."

Qiao Jingjing's pretty face turned red, and she tilted her head back, acting very playful, "Are you asking for a beating?"

A smile played on Chen Cheng's lips, and he nodded to them, "Hello everyone, just call me Chen Cheng."

"Okay, brother-in-law~" The women kept watching the smile on Handsome Chen's face, which never faded. Only the older sister was a bit more reserved and didn't dare to look at Chen Cheng, keeping her head down to pick up food.

Chen Cheng shook his head with a smile and picked up the beef cooking in the pot, placing it in Qiao Jingjing's bowl.

Sister Ling looked at the handsome couple opposite her and teased, "Hey, Jingjing, did your school assign seats based on looks?"

Qiao Jingjing's mouth twitched, "That's not true. In our class, we chose seats based on academic ranking, okay?"

Chen Cheng had a mischievous smile, "So you ended up guarding the last row of the classroom."

Qiao Jingjing was instantly embarrassed. "Hahahaha~" The women burst into laughter.

"Hmph," Qiao Jingjing said, suppressing a smile, "If it weren't for someone being like a Blockhead, I might have been able to get into a 985 university."

Everyone ate and chatted. With so many women present, and since A Guo was henpecked, they didn't drink alcohol and all had fruit juice.

More than two hours later, both the hosts and guests were satisfied. Chen Cheng was also stuffed, chatted with A Guo for a while, and then left.

The two of them walked towards the riverside while strolling. They didn't plan to walk all the way back; it was too far. The driver was following behind, so they would get in the car once they got tired.

Chen Cheng brought up what he had discussed with Sister Ling earlier. "Jingjing, do you want to make your studio independent?"

"Huh?" Qiao Jingjing was stunned, thinking she had misheard, and stared at Chen Cheng with wide eyes.

After a long while, Qiao Jingjing confirmed she hadn't misheard and pursed her lips, "Why are you bringing this up suddenly?" Her eyes darted around, "Are you worried about being photographed by entertainment reporters?"

Chen Cheng smiled and pulled her along as they continued walking, "Entertainment reporters are nothing."

"It's just that I don't want my girlfriend to be too busy."

"Next year, with the development, testing, and training of ZEN 1.0, plus some company matters, I might be very busy."

"It becomes very difficult for two busy people to get together."

"But if both people can decide for themselves when to be busy and when to rest, that would be great."

"My business is expanding, and many things are like arrows on a bowstring that must be released."

"So I was thinking, could you only take on work that you are interested in?"

"Commercial activities, endorsements, and the like—except for making some money, activities that aren't very interesting can be put aside."

"Or slowly transition to behind-the-scenes work. I will support you."

"Of course, this would be a big sacrifice for you."

Qiao Jingjing stopped walking, tears welling up in her eyes, feeling deeply touched.

She turned and threw herself into Chen Cheng's arms, her voice soft and sweet, "Blockhead, you are so good."