Superstar Assistant [GL] - Chapter 37

Chapter 37

After Lin Qiang made the call, he ordered his men to smash up every restaurant under Zhao Qing’s name.

Zhao Qing let out a cold laugh. Dong Minsi looked at her with worry, but Zhao Qing remained remarkably calm. With her hands shoved in her trouser pockets, she looked effortlessly cool, even taunting him: “Go ahead. Smash them. Smash to your heart’s content. I haven’t changed the decor in my shops for a long time anyway.”

A few minutes later, the manager of a Beijing branch called Zhao Qing. “Manager Zhao, the shop was just trashed! The men said you offended someone!”

Zhao Qing replied calmly, “Mm, I’m currently offending him right now. Tell the customers to evacuate quickly, and take the staff far away. Clear the space so they can do a thorough job.”

Zhao Qing’s attitude caught Lin Qiang and Liu Xinxin off guard. She truly didn’t seem afraid of the destruction. Liu Xinxin leaned into Lin Qiang, whispering piteously, “Mr. Lin, they don’t seem to fear you at all!”

Lin Qiang, infuriated, made two more calls. This time, it was Zhou Tiantian’s phone that rang. It was a representative from a food company they had been negotiating a Weibo promotion with. The person sounded apologetic: “I’m so sorry, we will pay the contract termination fee to your company, but we can no longer proceed with the promotion for Li Ziyu.”

Zhou Tiantian’s brow furrowed as a sense of despair began to creep in. But then, she felt Li Ziyu grasp her hand. Looking up, she saw Ziyu’s face was as calm as a breeze, as if nothing could knock her down. In that moment, Tiantian found her anchor. She steadied her voice and told the person, “Understood. I will have our legal department contact you regarding the breach.” She hung up and looked at Lin Qiang without a hint of fear.

“Good! Fine!” Lin Qiang snarled. “So you’ve all got stiff spines, eh? Let’s see if your pride can put food on the table!”

Just as Lin Qiang was about to use more of his connections to crush them, his phone rang. Despite his rage, he forced a smile when he saw the caller. “Hello, President Zhao! Long time no see.”

The voice on the other end was icy. “It has been a long time. And I think we shouldn’t see each other ever again.”

Lin Qiang’s smile froze. “President Zhao, what do you mean?”

“You’re quite the powerful man, Mr. Lin,” the man barked. “I wouldn’t dare associate with you. But please, have some mercy and let my sister’s restaurant be. It wasn’t easy for her to start her small business.”

Lin Qiang stared at Zhao Qing in shock, his composure crumbling into a frantic panic. “President Zhao… I… I didn’t know she was your sister! It’s my fault! I’ll apologize immediately! I’ll compensate her a hundred times over for the damages!”

“Enough,” the man interrupted. “An apology isn’t necessary. Don’t go near her and dirty her eyes.” He hung up.

Lin Qiang turned to Zhao Qing, his body beginning to tremble. “You… you’re the heiress of the Zhao family?” He had heard the Zhao heiress was a gentle, pampered girl; how was this short-haired woman radiating such a domineering aura?

Zhao Qing stood tall and gave a cold smirk. “Mr. Lin, did you enjoy smashing my shops? If not, there’s a new one right outside Hengdian. You can go smash that one yourself.”

Lin Qiang wouldn’t dare. He stood up, bowing and scraping. “Miss Zhao, this is all a huge misunderstanding! I’ll hire the best international designers to renovate your shops immediately! What do you think?”

The crew members’ expressions shifted instantly. They thought Li Ziyu was doomed, but it turned out the little shop owner who brought them food had such a terrifying background.

Liu Xinxin’s face turned even paler. She thought she had won, but Li Ziyu had connections even more powerful than her backer.

However, it wasn’t over. Before Lin Qiang could beg for Zhao Qing’s forgiveness, another call came. In his flustered state, he accidentally hit the speakerphone. The entire set heard a roar of fury from the phone: “Lin Qiang, do you have a fucking death wish? Of all the people to provoke, why did you touch Li Ziyu?!”

Lin Qiang was stunned. He quickly turned off the speaker. “What do you mean? Who exactly is Li Ziyu?”

The man on the phone hissed through gritted teeth, “Do you even need to ask who the ‘Li’ family is—the ones even I am terrified of?”

Lin Qiang’s phone slipped from his hand, hitting the floor with a sharp crack that echoed in the silent studio.

“Mr. Lin?” Liu Xinxin couldn’t believe the sudden reversal. She grabbed his arm. “What’s happening? Who called you?”

Lin Qiang snapped out of his daze and backhanded her across the face. “You bitch! This is all the trouble you brought me!”

Li Ziyu let out a sneer. “Oh? So in Mr. Lin’s eyes, my affairs are ‘trouble’?”

Lin Qiang’s face instantly changed to a fawning mask. “No, Miss Li! It’s a misunderstanding! It was all this woman’s instigation. Don’t worry, I’ll make sure she pays for this.”

Li Ziyu took Tiantian’s hand. “I don’t care. But Director Sun, you might need a new actor—and a new investor.”

The very next day, Lin Qiang withdrew his investment, and a new backer immediately filled the gap, ensuring no losses for the production. Lin Qiang spent his last hours on set desperately trying to appease Ziyu, but she ignored him entirely, busy playing with Tiantian’s fingertips.

Director Sun looked at Liu Xinxin coldly. “You know, more than bad acting, a director hates an actor who causes trouble. You’ll be hearing from our legal team regarding the contract breach.”

Liu Xinxin broke down in tears, begging for a second chance, but the Director remained firm. When she tried to call her manager, Zhao Kai, he simply screamed at her to get lost and not drag him down with her.

…

Inside the dressing room, Zhou Tiantian finished a call with Luo Na. “Sister Luo said from now on, I should just fight back boldly. She’ll handle everything.”

Li Ziyu smiled at her. “See? Everything is fine.”

But Tiantian was thinking about something else. Although the outcome was perfect, she wasn’t satisfied with herself. When Lin Qiang attacked, she had been powerless. I need to become stronger, she thought. Strong enough to protect Ziyu so she can work without worry.

Dong Minsi, seeing Tiantian’s serious face, smiled gently. “Still worried? Don’t be. Look how powerful those two are,” she said, including Zhao Qing in the praise.

Zhao Qing, still riding her “domineering” high, coughed lightly. “Well, it was nothing much.”

Dong Minsi gave Zhao Qing an admiring, shy look. Her voice was soft enough to melt water. “But I think you were truly incredible.”

The makeup artist’s hands shook. I’m not hearing this, I’m not hearing this! This room is full of titans!

Zhao Qing was thrilled. She had followed the screenwriter’s advice to show her “Alpha” side at the critical moment, and it had clearly worked. She got up to check on the lunch preparations.

As soon as Zhao Qing left, Dong Minsi dropped her shy act. Her aura shifted as she smirked at Li Ziyu. “It actually feels quite good to be protected.”

Li Ziyu chuckled. You think it’s good? Watching the two of you is even better.

Then, Ziyu turned to Tiantian, her eyes practically demanding: Why aren’t you praising me?

Tiantian caught the signal. She balled her fists and said in her soft but determined voice, “I will work even harder! I will protect and cherish you too!”

Li Ziyu: “…”

“Who wants you to protect me? Don’t you think I was the cool one today?” Li Ziyu grumbled.

Tiantian looked at her innocently. “But… wasn’t it your family background that was cool?”

Li Ziyu gnashed her teeth and huffed, turning away. Tiantian hid a secret smile.

Dong Minsi watched the two of them flirting and felt a sudden pang of envy. She pulled out her phone and messaged the screenwriter, Ji Xingchen: “According to the current progress, when can I finally start ‘feeding’ the public some romantic dog food with Zhao Qing?”