Chapter 29: The Contract
The day before the third round of the competition, An Zhiyan visited the set and found An Zhihan and their group.
Despite his growing fame, An Zhiyan remained humble without any airs.
He wanted to have a meal with his brother. Despite An Zhihan and the others not being allowed to leave the training camp, he didn't make any special requests. Instead, he joined them in the cafeteria.
A few of them who got along well sat together at a long table, which was big enough to accommodate over a dozen people.
Zhou Wenyuan walked over with his meal tray, smiling cheerfully as he asked, "May I join?"
Everyone looked up at him, and Fan Qianting was the first to respond, "Sure, but we're almost done eating."
"No problem. I'll be thrilled just to share a table with my idol."
They all knew that Zhou Wenyuan's idol was An Zhiyan. Nobody opposed, so Zhou Wenyuan took a seat at the table.
A few of them gathered in the cafeteria for their meal, and Su Jinli intentionally kept a distance from An Zhiyan, who was consuming a fish dish.
Expertly picking out the fish bones, An Zhihan asked Su Jinli, "The fish is so delicious, why don't you ever eat it? You don't eat seafood either."
Su Jinli glanced at An Zhihan again, "You eat yours, I just choose not to eat."
"Why is it? Given your love for tasty food, why don't you eat seafood? Think of all the delicious food you're missing out on. I've seen you eat shrimp sticks though.” An Zhiyan, who was sitting across from him, looked up at Su Jinli.
The truth is, bigger fishes preying on smaller ones is a very natural occurrence.
After becoming human, Su Jinli did not embrace vegetarianism, yet he still refused to eat seafood.
“I always feel that, if I ate them, I would hinder their transformation into spirits,” Su Jinli said sincerely.
Nodding his head, An Zhihan plucked out the row of bones from the center of the fish and responded, "So, does that mean I've been eating so many fishes since I was a kid that I've hindered many fish from becoming mermaids?"
"Perhaps, you might have," Su Jinli replied.
At that, An Zhihan chuckled but didn't reply.
Curious, An Zhiyan asked, "So, when you eat pork, aren't you delaying many Heavenly Marshal Tianpeng's rebirths?"
"As long as it's not the same species, I don't mind," Su Jinli sipped his mutton soup and responded.
An Zhihan immediately asked, "Why do you follow the retro human setting? Being a mermaid setting suits you better. You stand so firmly, just like a real little fish."
Fan Qianting imitated the tone from a movie, "Fish are so cute, why would you want to eat them?!"
Everyone at the table laughed.
Su Jinli felt a bit upset by their teasing.
Although he didn't eat fish, he didn't stop others from eating them either. Plus, he had a psychological fear of seeing others eating fish, which was why he kept his distance.
He glared at everyone and grumpily put down his chopsticks, saying, "I'm not eating anymore."
Wu Yu immediately gave Su Jinli one of his meatballs; Fan Qianting handed him a rib, An Zhihan placed a bottle of drink in front of him, and Chang Siyin served Su Jinli a chicken drumstick.
Feeling sulky, Su Jinli glanced at his plate and picked up his chopsticks once again to eat.
An Zhiyan, who was watching the scene, couldn't help but ask, "He's your team's pet, right?"
"Yes, he's being pampered like a pet," An Zhihan continued eating his fish.
"Well, he's the youngest, after all," Chang Siyin replied while eating.
"Um, you guys have a nice bond. How are you preparing for the next competition?" An Zhiyan asked.
"You can watch the rehearsal later," An Zhihan answered.
"Good, I came a day early just to understand the process."
Zhou Wenyuan looked up at Su Jinli and suddenly asked, "Su Jinli, I'm a little curious. Did the private school you attended teach subjects like math?"
Within the program group, the fact that Su Jinli hadn't attended normal school but private schooling was widely circulated.
Many people assumed that not attending school meant being illiterate, thus looking down on Su Jinli. After all, he couldn't handle even a bit of English, it was suspected whether he could handle math.
Su Jinli looked up at Zhou Wenyuan, "You mean arithmetic? I studied that. I've read books like 'The Nine Chapters on the Mathematical Art'."
"I don't quite understand, do you know the nine by nine multiplication table?"
"Have you ever read the 'Huainanzi'?"
"Er... No."
"What about 'Strategies of the Warring States'?"
"No... I haven't read that either..."
"In ancient times, during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, this kind of mnemonic existed and there are records to prove it. Private schools also included this. If you read more, you'd know."
Zhou Wenyuan laughed, feeling a certain indescribable discomfort.
He wanted to fit into this group, but after observing for a few days, he found that the central figure of this small group was Su Jinli.
Today, when An Zhiyan came, he also directly chose to sit right across from Su Jinli.
He tried to make Su Jinli look bad in front of An Zhiyan, so he intentionally asked this question, casually bringing up Su Jinli's weakness. However, his plan failed.
"So, have you read a lot of poetry and books?" Zhou Wenyuan asked, not giving up.
"Not really. Actually, we don't have many books in our village, but I've read all the books that we do have."
"Why did you choose to attend a private school instead of going to a normal school?"
"My health wasn't very good when I was young; I was weak. Initially, my older brother wanted to bring me along with him, but the other family members disagreed."
It was at this point that An Zhiyan intervened: "Your health wasn't good when you were young? How about now?"
"Much better. My grandfather used to give me medicinal baths since I was little, and I’ve practiced martial arts from a young age as well," Su Jinli replied.
"Awesome, my little fish!" An Zhihan exclaimed with exaggerated awe.
Su Jinli glared at An Zhihan, ignoring him.
"Hey, your temper has grown bigger recently, who did you learn it from?" An Zhihan, who was glared at, became irritated. Where was the Su Jinli who used to be afraid of him? He had grown bolder as they become more familiar.
Su Jinli still ignored An Zhihan.
Zhou Wen Yuan sighed again: "I'm so envious that you can eat so much. I can't do that, I have to eat less to maintain my figure. I really want to eat too…"
"Are you talking about me?" Su Jinli pointed to himself.
Zhou Wenyuan nodded.
"We’re different. I won’t gain weight no matter how much I eat, but you would, so you can either be fat, or not eat."
Su Jinli truly answered the question seriously. However, it sounded strange to Zhou Wenyuan.
Zhou Wenyuan felt a bit angry. He had been so humble, yet Su Jinli maintained this kind of attitude. It was disgusting.
Su Jinli patted his forehead, feeling a bit dizzy. Being around three healthy men was making him feel dizzy and overwhelmed.
Feeling that he couldn't hold on much longer, he used the table to help himself up, telling them: "You all carry on eating, I need to rest for a while."
"What's wrong?" Wu Yu finally spoke up. After An Zhihan arrived, Wu Yu had become especially silent. Clearly, the barrier within the company still existed.
"I'm a bit dizzy," Su Jinli answered.
"You haven't been sleeping well these past few days, probably because you're too tired and have low blood sugar. Let me help you to rest for a while, you should take a nap. You can’t keep overworking yourself." Wu Yu stood up, supporting Su Jinli's arm.
An Zhihan watched the two of them leave, abruptly resting his head on An Zhiyan's shoulder.
"Brother, actually, I’m also a bit dizzy. These days I’ve been practicing with Su Jinli and it’s really tiring," An Zhihan said weakly.
"Not bad."
"So, please tell me the rankings..."
"Go away!" An Zhiyan wiped his mouth, stood up, and said to An Zhihan, "Come here, I have a task for you."
________________________
Su Jinli and An Zhihan were a pair, so they always went to practice together and returned to the bedroom together.
Today, when they returned to the bedroom, An Zhihan was acting a bit strange. He was always hanging onto Su Jinli, acting more 'buddy-buddy' than before and being stickier.
"What's wrong?" Su Jinli asked.
"I want to chat with you." As soon as An Zhihan returned to the bedroom, he wanted to lie down. After thinking about it, he got into the bed, leaning against the wall and patted the other side of his bedding towards Su Jinli, "Come, get into big brother's blanket."
Fan Qianting was shaving by the window, he couldn’t help but look over and ask, "Is this how you young boys build relationships?"
"I get along well with my younger brother, is it any of your business?” An Zhihan retorted.
"No, no, no, you guys sleep. Just don’t toss and turn too much, I won't be able to sleep up here."
"You're complaining about a free ride?" An Zhihan continued asking.
"Do you have something on your mind?" Su Jinli asked An Zhihan, while he was tidying up his stuff.
After the supernatural event in room 501, Su Jinli started to be the last one to take a shower every day; he was also procrastinating at the moment.
"Never mind, let’s go outside and talk." An Zhihan got off the bed and took Su Jinli to the corridor.
Their bedroom is near the emergency exit, so the two chatted in the stairwell.
"Have you ever thought about switching to a better company after your contract with your current company expires?" An Zhihan asked Su Jinli.
"I haven't even made any money for the company yet..."
"Your company is so broke, they wouldn't have spent much on training you, right? If it really comes to it, when you terminate the contract, just give them three times the amount they spent on you. Let your new company cover this expense."
Su Jinli still shook his head, "I have to discuss this with my manager."
"By the time you meet your manager, your contract will have expired, and it will be too late. If you really have a good relationship with your manager, you can bring him along to your new company."
"I can't decide, I still need to..."
"My brother will meet with your manager. Would it be ok if he conveys the thoughts of your manager to you at that time?"
Su Jinli thought it was strange, "How did you and Wu Yu know my contract is about to expire?"
"Did Wu Yu also approach you?"
"Yes, just a few days ago."
"I guess someone from Boruo Pineapple conveyed the message. However, if you go to Boruo Pineapple, Wu Yu can't take care of you. He doesn't even have an assistant. If you come to Sejia Legend, my brother is there, and your resources will definitely be in good hands."
"Then... can I get Shen Cheng's contact information?"
"Are you still fixated on this?"
"Yes, I still want to confirm something with Shen Cheng. Then I can decide which company to go to."
An Zhihan found it strange after listening, he couldn't help but ask, "Why?"
"I can't say yet."
"Hey! If you get in touch with Shen Cheng and then you go to Boruo Pineapple, won't I be so frustrated to death?"
Su Jinli shrunk his neck and had nothing to say.
"This is your own business, you have to make your own decisions! And you need to weigh out your own future. Don't go to an unsuitable place just to chase stars. Can't you tell which place is better for you? My father is the president of Sejia Legend. I can have a say in this matter. As my younger brother, I will definitely take care of you!"
"I... can I think about it some more?" Su Jinli asked.
"I've persuaded you so much, and you're still considering!" An Zhihan was unhappy. He stood up, patted his butt and walked away.
He, An Zhihan, the second young master of the An family, had never received such treatment!
Which newcomer wouldn't be excited and eager to sign up with Sejia Legend?
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