Chapter Ninety-Three: Signing the Contract

Jiang Hu stared at Mo Niannian for several seconds, his expression inscrutable. “You don’t want to?”

“Want? Don’t be ridiculous. Put your clothes on properly and stand still.”

Jiang Hu lowered his head, his slender fingers methodically buttoning each button with a strange rhythm.

“Niannian… do you really not want to?” Jiang Hu asked again, his eyes deepening, a thread of tension hidden within.

“Of course not! Isn’t that obvious?” Mo Niannian rolled her eyes.

Jiang Hu fell silent for a long moment, then revealed a bitter smile. “So I’ve become useless, then.”

“Sorry to bother you. Thanks for everything during this time,” Jiang Hu said, bowing slightly as he headed toward the door.

His tone sounded off, and Mo Niannian hurriedly called out, “Wait! Jiang Hu, have you thought this through? You want to terminate the contract?”

Jiang Hu lowered his gaze. “No merit, no salary. Thank you for your care these past days.”

“Are you just going to leave? What about your debts?”

His eyes grew colder. “Miss Mo, if you don’t fancy this skin and bones, there will always be someone who does.”

Mo Niannian’s eyes widened in shock. “Jiang Hu, are you serious?”

“Debts have to be paid back,” he said icily, his eyes devoid of warmth.

Mo Niannian’s head ached. “I said I’ll help you pay first. You can repay me once you have the money.”

“No need to trouble you, Miss Mo. I’ll handle it myself.”

Jiang Hu lowered his eyes, his breathing slightly hurried. He was gambling once again—wondering if this time he could succeed.

“Your plan is to find someone else and sell your body?” Mo Niannian was stunned. How could Jiang Hu do such a thing?

Yet, seeing his current state, she felt maybe it wasn’t so strange after all.

Jiang Hu had always seemed somewhat world-weary, detached from life, observing everything with cold eyes.

Yet he wore a gentle mask, deceiving countless people.

The more Mo Niannian thought about it, the more she felt Jiang Hu might really go through with this.

“…Then just consider it a gift from me. I have so much money I don’t know where to put it.”

Jiang Hu’s expression grew colder. “Miss Mo, there’s no need for that. I’ll find a way with the money.”

He pulled a pre-written contract from his pocket. “Take a look. If there’s anything to add, let me know. I’ll pay the penalty soon.”

Mo Niannian was infuriated—this male lead was impossible to reason with. She could only sigh in helplessness. “What exactly do you want?”

Jiang Hu pondered for a moment. “Miss Mo, do you really want to help me?”

“I said I would, didn’t I?” Mo Niannian snapped.

Jiang Hu took out another contract. “These are the conditions I can offer.”

Several large sponsorship agreements appeared before Mo Niannian’s eyes. She read quickly, her eyes widening.

“Jiang Hu, are you mad?”

His face darkened, eyes lowered. “At least I want this money to be worth it.”

He gave a self-mocking smile. “This is all I’m worth now.”

Mo Niannian slapped the contracts on the table. “This is impossible!”

She was angry, heartbroken—how could Jiang Hu do such a thing?

Jiang Hu calmly put the contracts away and said again, “Sorry to disturb.”

Mo Niannian was furious, staring at his back long after he left.

She refused to believe Jiang Hu could truly do such a thing.

She would rather believe he was doing it on purpose—intentionally orchestrating all this.

[That host… the male lead contacted Zhang Feifei.]

[Zhang Feifei?]

[That sixty-something rich woman. Rumor has it she inherited her late husband’s fortune—at least five billion yuan. She’s liked the male lead for a long time and has invited him many times.]

[Has Jiang Hu lost his mind?]

The system paused for two seconds. [Host… you should hurry. Jiang Hu and Zhang Feifei are negotiating now.]

“That bastard!” Mo Niannian suddenly stood and strode toward the door.

Jiang Hu stood by the window, calm and silent. “Yes, anytime.”

“Three million a month? Fine, I can accept that.”

“Yes, tonight.”

Mo Niannian snatched Jiang Hu’s phone. “Jiang Hu, are you crazy?”

Jiang Hu reached out, “That’s my phone.”

Mo Niannian decisively hung up his call. “Contract, right? Hand it over. I’ll sign.”

How things would proceed was still her decision. The key now was to stop this bastard.

Who knew what rash foolishness he might commit.

Jiang Hu’s long curled lashes hid the colors in his eyes. “Are you sure you want to sign?”

Once signed, there would be no turning back.

Mo Niannian rolled her eyes. “Enough chatter. Are you signing or not?”

Jiang Hu handed her the contract. She signed her name neatly.

With the matter settled, Jiang Hu’s heart settled back into his chest.

Since Niannian couldn’t deceive him forever, he’d find a way to trap her instead. He would never let go.

“I’ll transfer the money to your account in a bit. Make sure to check.”

Mo Niannian turned and left. Such a large sum required informing the original owner’s parents.

Jiang Hu nodded slightly. “Tonight, at your place or mine?”

Mo Niannian blinked in confusion.

“The contract takes effect upon signing. It’s my basic duty as the little lover,” Jiang Hu said without changing expression.

“…No thanks.”

His face instantly darkened, a sadness as if abandoned. “I knew you wanted to break the contract, Niannian.”

Sadness enveloped him, surrounding his whole body. His eyes showed no light.

Mo Niannian held her forehead. “When did I ever say I wanted to break the contract?”

“This is my duty. Otherwise, I’d be ashamed to take the money.”

Jiang Hu stared intently at Mo Niannian, as if if she said one more word, he would storm out and sell himself for a high price.

Mo Niannian felt exhausted. “Go to my place?”

“Fine. I’ll wait for you.”

Jiang Hu exhaled deeply, suppressing his wildly pounding heart.

Niannian, you can’t run away.

That night, Jiang Hu dragged his suitcase into Mo Niannian’s home.

Mo Niannian led him upstairs and casually pointed to a room. “This is your room. Take a look.”

“That’s not your room,” Jiang Hu said.

Mo Niannian leaned against the doorframe. “You still want to sleep with me? Dream on.”

“This is my duty. It’s clearly stated in the contract.”

Mo Niannian glanced over it briefly. Who knew what nonsense Jiang Hu had written? Surely he hadn’t included how many times per night?

She regretted not reading carefully.

She glared at him fiercely. “Don’t think I don’t know what you’re thinking. No way.”

Jiang Hu was that bastard, full of wicked thoughts. After calming down, Mo Niannian thought long and hard and felt something was off.

Had she been fooled again?

Ugh, it was infuriating.

Who knew what Jiang Hu was thinking? If he ended up with some Feifei, wouldn’t her malice meter explode?

The very thought of Jiang Hu and Zhao Feifei together made Mo Niannian uncomfortable. The scene was too painful to imagine.

She shook her fist. “Now that you’re living here, behave yourself or I’ll kick you out sooner or later.”

“Okay.”

He would never leave—he couldn’t.

Jiang Hu stared at Mo Niannian, his eyes darkening, consumed by madness and obsession.

Mo Niannian didn’t dare argue and went back to her room to sleep peacefully.

In their previous world, Jiang Hu never dared cross the line.

Mo Niannian still trusted his self-control.

Jiang Hu didn’t sleep all night. He silently explored every corner of the Mo household.

It was his first time getting close to Niannian’s world—every place bore her traces. He stepped into her private realm.

Thinking of this, his entire being surged with excitement.

Mo Niannian enjoyed the rare breakfast Jiang Hu made.

She smiled contentedly.

Compared to Jiang Hu’s cooking, all else was unbearable.

Thinking back on the days past, she hugged herself with a pang of pity.

Suddenly, she didn’t regret signing the contract. At least Jiang Hu’s cooking was genuinely bad.

“How is it? Still to your taste?” Jiang Hu, dressed casually, smiled gently.

“So-so,” Mo Niannian said, masking her true feelings, eyes fixed on the spoon in Jiang Hu’s hand.

Her whole face begged for a taste.

Jiang Hu chuckled softly. “Want another spoonful? The rest will be ready soon.”

Mo Niannian, spoiled by Jiang Hu’s care, instinctively opened her mouth, waiting to be fed.

His heart pounded fiercely as he stared at her ruby lips for a long while.

His Adam’s apple rolled, and it took a long moment to calm down.

After eating, Jiang Hu was kicked out to work.

Director Wang’s film “A Glance at the Empire” was about to premiere, and heavy promotion was underway. Jiang Hu, as one of the leads, naturally had to participate in the publicity.

His recent popularity was soaring—his acting praised, endorsements flooding in, his revelation of having someone he liked, and the company’s billion-yuan debt—all sensational topics.

At the press conference, after promoting the film, it was time for the lead actors’ interviews.

Eight out of ten reporters focused on Jiang Hu.

At first, the questions were standard, and Jiang Hu answered officially, focusing on the film.

Gradually, the questions shifted to other matters. A reporter asked about the debt.

“Jiang Hu, can you talk about your company’s debts? We hear it’s over a billion yuan. How do you plan to handle this?”

“No matter what, I take part responsibility. I won’t evade it. I will repay all the money.”

His answer earned rounds of applause.

Jiang Hu smiled gently at them, but his eyes were indifferent, coldly observing everything.

“Jiang Hu, one more question. You previously said you like someone. We’d like to know—how is your relationship now? Are you together?”