Chapter 29: Penalty for Breach of Contract
After giving the signed photo to Wu Qingqing, she wanted to treat Wen Yan to a meal, but Wen Yan refused.
He went alone into the wonton shop at the entrance of his residential complex and ordered a bowl of wontons.
After the owner brought it over, Wen Yan took one bite and noticed the taste was wrong.
“Boss, did you change the filling in your shop?”
“Changed it the Thursday before last.” The boss was busy cleaning tables. “Couldn’t buy a certain ingredient, so I found another supplier to replace it. Does it not taste as good as before?”
“A little different.” Wen Yan replied simply, ate a few more mouthfuls, but couldn’t eat anymore.
The Thursday before last was the day he quarreled with Gu Yulan.
The wontons Gu Yulan had packed and sent over that day were also the ones with the changed filling. It was just that he didn’t eat them that day, and hadn’t come here in the two weeks since, or he wouldn’t have realized something was wrong only now.
Wen Yan sat there dryly, looking at the chat window between him and Gu Yulan, and sent a photo over.
Gu Yulan hadn’t come out to find him for a long time, and Wen Yan was too busy; the two had returned to the days of simple chatting on the phone.
Wen Yan thought of the previous quarrels and pursed his lips.
His relationship with Gu Yulan had problems; it was hard to go on.
Maybe there really should be a little more understanding, just like Gu Yulan said when apologizing on the phone—that he was afraid of losing him because he cared too much.
It was the first relationship for both of them; maybe there would always be some problems.
Wen Yan decided to try one last time to repair his first love.
Gu Family.
Gu Yulan was in the study staring at the computer, large bruises on his face. He had been banned from going out by Father Gu for several days and could only handle matters at home.
The study door was pushed open directly. He looked up and saw an exquisitely made-up face.
Mother Gu must have just returned from traveling, looking travel-worn and full of anger as she slammed the study door shut.
“Mom, can you knock next time you come in?”
Gu Yulan’s voice was low and irritable; he didn’t expect his mother to listen.
Mother Gu grabbed a book from the shelf and threw it at him, shouting, “Why did you mess with Pei Zhouye for no reason! Do you want to die? I think you’re tired of living a good life!”
The book hit the table with a crash, and the wind from its flight scattered the papers on the desk.
“What are you doing!” Gu Yulan frowned deeply and stood up too. “Don’t touch my desk!”
Standing up, he was a head taller than Mother Gu. Her momentum weakened, but her tone remained extremely dissatisfied.
“Useless. Why yell at me? If you really have ability, go snatch the shares from Gu Yuqing!”
“How many times have I told you? The old man has no intention of leaving an inheritance for us mother and son! If you don’t strive, what good end will we have under Gu Yuqing’s hand when the old man dies? Do we have to go back to living in that dilapidated old flat then?”
Gu Yulan frowned even tighter, explaining impatiently, “So what if he didn’t leave an inheritance? Selling a few of your luxury bags would keep you from living in a dilapidated flat for the rest of your life! It’s not like I don’t have money!”
“You want me to sell bags to support us?” Mother Gu’s eyes widened, flustered and exasperated. “Do you have a conscience?”
Gu Yulan was too lazy to explain. “I didn’t mean that…”
“What is that little money of yours enough for! Don’t think I don’t know that the two million you spent to keep a canary had to go through Gu Yuqing’s side! Who can you afford to support?”
Gu Yulan fell completely silent, his face turning darker.
“Clean your brain and think properly yourself. What kind of bullshit are you doing acting stupid!”
Mother Gu left aggressively, and the study door was slammed shut again.
Gu Yulan stood alone, his chest heaving violently. He glanced at the book Mother Gu had thrown just now and smashed it onto the floor.
He had lived in a dilapidated flat for ten years, but so what? He was now standing in City A’s circle of wealthy families; others had to call him “Young Master Gu” when they saw him.
At the racing track, a group of people gathered together smoking.
Someone mentioned Gu Yulan, laughing frivolously and cheerfully.
“Who doesn’t know he’s an illegitimate son?” Someone blew a smoke ring, tone contemptuous. “Back then, his mother stormed the Gu family gate with a pregnant belly and was chased out by the old master with a broom. Who in the entire City A circle doesn’t know?”
“Gu Yuqing was named Gu Yuqing after consulting a master. Gu Yulan’s name was cobbled together by his mother to match the legitimate son’s name just to climb up!”
Laughter erupted. Someone couldn’t straighten his back from laughing and pounded the wall a few times.
That person continued:
“His mother finally waited it out. The old man is almost seventy, and his first wife has been dead for a year. He wanted to enjoy the blessings of descendants, and conveniently rekindle old flames with his mother to relive his youth, so he took them back, hahahahahaha…”
Someone saw what was posted below and stifled a laugh. “Isn’t this Wen Yan? He went to work at my friend’s company.”
Several people gathered to look at the photos and jeered, “Forward it to Gu Yulan!”
That person tapped a few times to forward it and sent a voice message.
[Someone Asked Me Out: Young Master Gu, how are you so shabby that you let Wen Yan go out to work for money?]
Gu Yulan opened this voice message, which was mixed with the laughter of several people.
His face was very dark, veins bulging on his neck.
[Gu Yulan: What do you mean?]
[Someone Asked Me Out: You didn’t know? Wen Yan took private jobs behind your back; he went to Chenzi’s company to be a model.]
The ridicule in the tone was piercing. Gu Yulan gripped the phone until his knuckles turned white, a sense of humiliation rushing straight up.
[Gu Yulan: Don’t let him shoot anymore.]
[Someone Asked Me Out: They have a penalty for breach of contract, right? Seven or eight hundred thousand probably. Are you paying it for him?]
Gu Yulan hesitated for a while, then gritted his teeth.
[Fine.]
[Someone Asked Me Out: Just kidding, that pittance doesn’t need it. I’ll just tell Chenzi later.]
Gu Yulan didn’t reply.
He stared at the bowl of wontons Wen Yan had sent, his eyes dark. He still didn’t ask Wen Yan why he hadn’t told him about being a model.
There were two more shoots on Sunday.
Wen Yan got up in the morning preparing to rush to the photography site and had already entered the subway station.
While waiting for the subway, several messages popped up on Wen Yan’s WeChat.
Termination notice from the modeling agency, two messages, and two screenshots: one of the contract, one of the penalty payment approval.
[The penalty for early termination has been paid. No need to come anymore.]
[Within a certain period after termination (1 year), you are not allowed to collaborate with other agencies.]
A few indifferent messages, with no further explanation. The messages sent out turned into red exclamation marks.
The subway arrived. The crowd squeezed past Wen Yan, coming and going.
Wen Yan froze in place, looking down at his phone. His nose soured, and tears fell unknowingly onto the screen.
He sniffled, wiped away the tears, and walked back.
It didn’t matter; he had already earned a lot of money. This was a part-time job he hadn’t expected to have anyway, and school was starting in a few days…
Wen Yan frowned, holding back his tears, but the grievance was unstoppable.
It was the second job in his life he had been fired from, yet he had done nothing wrong at all.
The only people around him with the ability to do such a thing were Gu Yulan and Pei Zhouye. But he hadn’t mentioned his part-time job to Gu Yulan.
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