"Name your price, and I swear, when I have money, I'll pay you back every cent."
Wang Li looked at his foolish expression, feeling both exasperated and amused.
"Do you genuinely not understand, or are you pretending? Who cares about your money? I want you, the person."
"Let's put it this way, Peng Fei, I'll give you another year. If you still can't find her within a year, I'll be your girlfriend, alright?"
Peng Fei hadn't even started looking. In his current state, he didn't dare to. He also didn't know if Zhan Jingchun would be willing to see him and give him a chance to atone if he did find her in the future.
However, he was certain he couldn't forget her and didn't want to start anything with anyone else.
Besides repaying Wang Li with money, he couldn't think of any other way.
Since Wang Li hadn't said anything, he set a goal for himself.
One hundred thousand yuan. He had to work hard to repay her help with this amount as soon as possible.
Having made up his mind, Peng Fei acted immediately, resigning from his factory job the very next day.
His师傅 was very regretful, and even the workshop director came to persuade him to stay. Losing someone as steady as him was indeed a loss for the factory.
Peng Fei rejected everyone's pleas and began to study while systematically participating in training.
Nancheng entered the lunar month of November, and the competition officially began. He walked into the massive broadcast hall and met many young, handsome men and beautiful women.
His horizons were once again broadened.
He realized there were so many diverse people in the world, and everyone's thoughts were so open-minded. He once again recognized how provincial he had been before.
Poverty and a lack of broad perspective had fostered Peng Fei's inferiority complex, but it had also contributed to his composure.
Having little in common with others, he remained silent. The time he wasn't competing was entirely dedicated to studying.
While others were performing, they engaged in all sorts of ambiguous interactions and spread rumors, none of which concerned him.
Each contestant had a one-on-one cameraman following them to capture their lives outside of performances, preparing for behind-the-scenes footage to be edited for broadcast.
Every time they filmed him, he was either reading a book or looking at one. Even his agent found it boring.
He was urged to create some drama to generate program effects and leave a deep impression on viewers.
But Peng Fei didn't know how to do anything like that, nor did he want to.
The agent reconsidered, thinking that fewer dramatic incidents, while not gaining him much attention, would also prevent him from backfiring and being criticized by netizens. This was also a good thing, so he didn't push him further.
After more than a month like this, Peng Fei surprisingly persisted from the first round to the final round.
On the fifteenth day of the twelfth lunar month, the final recording of the program took place. The top three contestants were about to have their results revealed.
The judges' challenge tested their comprehension and on-the-spot reaction to three vastly different styles of clothing.
Peng Fei didn't know much about fashion design, and his mind was simple. He performed solely from his heart, and the result was only slightly satisfactory, earning him third place.
But it was already very good.
As a pure newcomer and an ordinary person, his ability to defeat so many professional models and advance to this stage had already exceeded his agent's expectations.
After the program recording concluded, the agent invited him out for a meal. Seeing him so calm even after getting third place, the agent subtly felt that he would achieve great things in the future.
Because of Peng Fei, he was filled with confidence for the future.
He asked Peng Fei if he was returning home for the New Year. If not, he offered to take him out to socialize and attend some banquets to expand his network.
Peng Fei said he wasn't going home, but he didn't want to expand his network. He hadn't sent money home for over a month, and his mother and Fangfang were waiting for him to send money for the New Year.
He wanted to find work during these few days off.
The agent knew he came from a small town with a difficult family background and wanted him to earn more. But what kind of work could he find?
It would only be delivery, packing, or distributing flyers – tiring, low-end, and not lucrative.
"In such a hurry to make money? Don't you want to rest for a day?"
Peng Fei didn't say it out loud, but he had been anxious for the past month.
"Yes. I can't sit still. My family is in debt."
"You always mention family debt, how much do you owe?"
Peng Fei roughly calculated, "Around forty thousand."
Forty thousand yuan was nothing to the agent, who had seen much bigger storms.
Such a small debt had made him so worried?
He couldn't help but laugh and pat Peng Fei's shoulder.
"Brother, it's not that I'm lecturing you, but you're still too naive."
"Before, I didn't think of becoming brothers with you, so I didn't explain many things or words to you in detail. Since we're at this point now..."
"Let's put it this way, you want to make money and repay debt, right? Brother will show you a path to get rich overnight. Are you in?"
Peng Fei didn't know what could make him rich overnight, but he knew that pies don't fall from the sky, and it certainly wouldn't be anything good.
"No. Brother, I can't do what you're talking about."
The agent was almost amused to death by him, laughing heartily, and then looking at him with even more respect.
"I haven't even said anything yet, and you already know you can't do it? Kid, you know quite a lot. So, do you have someone you like?"
Peng Fei didn't hide it. "Yes."
The agent smiled, "Oh, I thought you were a blockhead who didn't understand these things. I didn't expect..."
"Don't tell me you just fell for someone during this time? Let me tell you, there's no sincerity in this industry, especially with women. What kind of men haven't they met? They're young and beautiful, with capital, and proud. You can't handle them at all. Don't think about those impossible things."
Peng Fei knew he was overthinking and explained, "It's not someone from the modeling team."
The agent was taken aback. "Oh? Then where from? Are you talking about Wang Li? Are you two really a couple?"
Peng Fei said no. "Stop guessing, you don't know her."
But the agent was curious. "Who is it then? To be liked by a blockhead like you, that girl must be incredibly fortunate. Tell me, is it your childhood friend? Or someone from the factory before?"
Peng Fei refused to say, his eyes drifting towards the window.
Coincidentally, outside the window, a massive billboard glowed brilliantly in the night sky. The giant "Zhan Corporation" on it lit up Peng Fei's eyes.
Zhan Corporation?
He had heard the name "Chunchun" mention it before.
She said the chairman of Zhan Corporation was her father, and her family was very wealthy, the kind who could give as much money as one wanted.
Peng Fei had been so foolish before, his mind only focused on his own small world.
When Zhan Jingchun said those things, he just thought she was making them up to escape.
After coming here, he only thought about making money every day and didn't remember to inquire about Zhan Corporation.
It wasn't until this moment that he was struck as if by lightning, truly realizing the existence of this corporation.
It was as if he had seen something extraordinary, and his blood instantly froze. He stared at the billboard for a long time before snapping back to attention at the agent's call.
"What's wrong? Why does your face look so scary? What did you see that scared you so much? Don't frighten me."
Peng Fei dazedly patted his own face and shifted his gaze.
"It's nothing. Brother, do you know Zhan Corporation?"
The agent looked at him strangely. "Of course, I do. Living in Nancheng, let alone Nancheng, who in the entire country doesn't know Zhan Corporation? You don't? Why are you suddenly asking about this?"