Chapter 463 - Where is the way out? (2/2)

”Are you really fine?”

”Do I sound bad?”

”You sound okay, but I'm still worried. The two of us happened to meet each other once and only chatted once, but I understand you very well. You are too stubborn. Now with such a large matter happening, I'm afraid you can't pa.s.s this snag. So after deliberating all day, I decided to give you a call to ask on you, if not I'll keep worrying over you. Well, alright then, since that's all I can say, I want you to think positively and look towards the future. That is all. Make sure to take care of your health.”

”Thanks Auntie Ci.”

......

The door suddenly opened.

Rao Aimin entered uninvited using the keys to the apartment. She did not even ask before opening the door. She did not even mention the SARFT doc.u.ment and told Zhang Ye, ”The dishes are ready. Have dinner at my place!”

Zhang Ye said, ”I won't be going, Landlady Auntie.”

Rao Aimin leered at him. ”Heh, in the past, you would be crying and screaming to have meals at my place. Kid, you even have a sense of integrity this time? You really aren't coming?”

Zhang Ye smiled and said, ”I'm really not going. I'm not hungry.”

Rao Aimin left with a fling of her arms. ”Got it.”

Zhang Ye knew that the landlady was also worried about him.

Friend after friend called him!

All of them contacted him out of concern!

He found it quite heartwarming that so many people thought of him and remembered him. Compared to the Beijing Education Publis.h.i.+ng Firm's adding insult to injury, Zhang Ye thought of another phrase—a friend in need is a friend indeed. That afternoon, nearly every person Zhang Ye considered a friend called him without exception. Even w.a.n.g Xiaomei, who was out on business in the West, or Zhang Yuanqi, who was filming a MV in Australia, had given Zhang Ye a phone call. Wu Zeqing had done the same, including Zhang Ye's relatives. Although they exchanged only a few words, it was sufficient.

Alright, there was an exception.

Yao Jiancai never called.

Zhang Ye gave him a call, but it never went through. His phone was constantly switched off. Thinking of how Old Yao was also on the list of deplorable artists, Zhang Ye knew that something had happened to Old Yao. Furthermore, it was a situation that happened out of the blue. As brothers, they sure suffered bad luck at the same time!

However, Old Yao was definitely not as miserable as him. Zhang Ye was now pushed into a dead end, and reduced back to his original form. He had compensated Beijing Education Publis.h.i.+ng Firm 3.5 million as well as the 70,000 to the other publis.h.i.+ng firm, so now he was penniless. The 3 million endors.e.m.e.nt fee he received previously had been reduced greatly after tax, leaving him with about 2 million. The remaining 1 million was the salary and bonuses Zhang Ye received back when he was working. In this one swift move, Zhang Ye's savings were wiped dry. He became broke, and his programs had been halted. Whatever had to be taken off the shelves were taken off. Saying that he was reduced back to his original form wasn't an exaggeration. In some sense, he was in an even worse position than he had previously been in. At least back then, he had just graduated from college and could start from scratch. He could acc.u.mulate popularity bit by bit, beginning from nothing, but now?  There was no chance to even go on camera!

At that moment in time, Zhang Ye sat on a stool in his home and lit up a cigarette. He ruminated for a long time. Should he create a pen name to write a novel? However, he needed his ident.i.ty card to sign a contract and publish. His ident.i.ty card was now on the publis.h.i.+ng firms' blacklist, so it was impossible for him to have a pa.s.s on that. If he changed a pen name and became a ghost writer for someone else? That wouldn't do too. That way, no one would know it was a book he wrote. He would not gain any popularity as a result!

Singing?

Filming movies?

Produce a program?

There was no need to think about these as they were impossible now!

Should he develop himself overseas? After a bout of deliberation, he also overthrew that choice!

It was not that he could not develop himself abroad. It was not like he did not have the ability to work in the foreign entertainment industry. With the ban still in place, even if he were to produce a program overseas, the show would not be permitted to air domestically, nor would there be any publicity. Then the outcome would still be the same, he would not gain any popularity. Furthermore, Zhang Ye's roots were in this country. His fans were all domestic. He couldn't just abandon them and run away, right? That would be unacceptable! Now was still not the time to develop himself overseas. It was not like there were mountains of gold everywhere internationally. Without a foundation, how could he develop himself? Who knew if the list of deplorable artists were sent over, those foreigners might reject him upon seeing it. A celebrity banned in China would not be welcomed overseas either! Those celebrities, who did well overseas, basically did so with the Chinese market. Foreigners only looked up to the celebrity because of China's influence. With China's market so huge, yet you were a banned celebrity, who would give you a second look? This was equivalent to being sentenced to death before he began!

A dead end!

Everywhere was a dead end!

Zhang Ye studied the situation all day till his head hurt. He did not see a way out. It seemed like there was not a single way out!

No!

There definitely was something!

Where was the way out?

Who can f**king tell me where the way out is?

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