I'm A Baller - Chapter 54

Chapter 54: Dishing Out Compliments
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Wang Yan was not the only person who was surprised. Even Liu Yuanfang and the other contestants were kind of taken aback by Ling Ya’s actions.
Da Gang was the first one to react. Pounding the table, he said, “Damn, this girl is really upfront, huh? I bet she wants to be Mrs. Wang!”
Everyone burst into laughter at the remark that came out of nowhere. The men were laughing rowdily, whereas the ladies had unreadable expressions on their faces and couldn’t stop themselves from looking in the direction of the door.
They could see nothing, of course.
Hearing the commotion behind him, Liu Yuanfang’s expression had darkened, and he was feeling slightly anxious.
“F*ck, if you stay behind to become Mrs. Wang, how I am going to find another pretty girl to replace you?” he thought.
But he had no right to stop her, so he could only say a silent prayer: “Don’t be rash, Mr. Wang. This was a once-off. Please don’t become an investor!”
At this moment, Wang Yan was being dragged towards the staircase around the corner. He was still trying to figure out what was going on, when he heard Ling Ya say with enthusiasm, “Mr. Wang, I wish to follow you!”
What?!
Wang Yan was totally bewildered. He groaned inwardly, thinking, “Don’t be like this, Miss!
“You are making things difficult for me!
“I am a man with moral integrity! Besides, I already decided to give my first time to San Wang. What good is turning me on when I can’t act on it? It wouldn’t do any good for us both, you know?!”
Ling Ya looked at Wang Yan expectantly. She was breathing somewhat heavily, and her chest heaved with every breath she took.
Glancing at her from the corner of his eye, he sized her up—early twenties, young and lively with a soothing smile, she was just as attractive as Mizi. He would give her a score of over eight out of ten.
The score was slightly low… Ah… No, no, no!
It had nothing to do with the score. He had already sworn to save his virginity for Miss San Wang!
Having made up his mind, Wang Yan was just about to shake his head, but Ling Ya added, “Mr. Wang, I really don’t want to follow Liu Yuanfang!”
What the heck?!
Were things this complicated in these circles?!
This time around, Wang Yan was really taken aback. He had managed to remain composed but still couldn’t stop his eyes from travelling down to her chest…
“Hmm, they’re not bad…” he said to himself.
“Ahem, ahem!”
Coughing dryly, Wang Yan shook his head regretfully and said, “I’m sorry…”
“At least give me a chance, Mr. Wang!”
Ling Ya continued imploring pitifully, with her mouth formed into a pout and her nose scrunched.
“I really can’t give you a chance right now, sis!” he thought.
“How about you wait a while longer?
“Let’s discuss this again after I’ve settled my first time, yeah?”
Just as Wang Yan was about to get to the point, Ling Ya suddenly changed her tune.
“Just now, Xiaodai asked Liu Yuanfang how the gifts were going to be distributed, but Boss Liu hemmed and hawed, refusing to give us a definite answer…”
Ling Ya hadn’t noticed that her dialect was difficult for Mr. Wang to understand. Having already broached the topic, she couldn’t stop herself from telling him about her complaints.
“I could see that it was never Boss Liu’s intention to split the earnings with any of us. Even with you, he was being evasive, let alone us!
“Brother Gang is hot-tempered, and Xiaodai is too straightforward. They’ll make a fuss for sure, sooner or later. If not today, then tomorrow.
“But there’s no point quarrelling with him. Boss Liu handles all the accounts, so if he bullsh*ts about promotion costs, bandwidth costs, and so on, then deducts those from the earnings, we won’t be able to stop him from doing so.
“But he has no right to do so! Those gifts were bestowed on us by our supporters, and we earned them through our blood, sweat, and tears. He has no right to retain them!
“I refuse to accept that!
“I’m too disappointed in Liu Yuanfang. He isn’t someone we should work with.
“Please let me work with you, Mr. Wang.”
After saying all that in one breath, Ling Ya looked up at Wang Yan hopefully, her eyes sparkling.
She was just like a puppy, except that her tongue hadn’t been sticking out.
Wang Yan let out a deep breath.
“F*cking hell. Sis, you’re really scary!” he thought. “What if I had pushed you against the wall without a single word, then held your head and forced a kiss on you? How would that have worked out?”
After grumbling inwardly, he asked her, “I’m not planning to do any live streams. What are you going to do, if you were to follow me?”
Ling Ya was excited to finally receive a response. “You could register one! It’s very simple! Then we’ll sign on with you!”
“Hang on, hang on…” Wang Yan said with a frown. “Why would I want to do that?”
“We could make money for you!”
Ling Ya proudly raised her head, exuding an air of confidence.
“You’ve seen for yourself. Both me and Mizi have supporters, Brother Gang is good with words, and Xiaodai is sure to make something of himself in the future, even if he seems a little silly now…”
“Stop, stop, stop!”
Wang Yan motioned for her to stop, and laughed in spite of himself. “Since you’re so confident of yourself, why don’t you just go solo?”
“Where could we go without the backing of a union?”
Ling Ya didn’t bother hiding her apprehension.
“Look, it doesn’t matter which platform. Those big hosts have the backing of a union. Wouldn’t solo contractors be bullied to death by the platforms?
“And I’ve done my homework. I found out that only Brother Kai signed on directly with Douyu. The rest of the hosts have a three-way contract, so there’s no way they could circumvent the union.”
“Doesn’t Boss Liu intend to start up a management agency? You guys didn’t sign with him?”
“We didn’t sign any long-term agreements!”
Ling Ya thought she had finally gotten through to Wang Yan, so her eyes sparkled in anticipation.
“Liu Yuanfang was reluctant to sign a formal contract with Brother Gang and Xiaodai, ’cause he would have to pay them a monthly base salary! And he wasn’t certain whether they would become a big hit, so they agreed on a probation period of one month.
“As for me and Mizi, he did want to sign a long-term agreement, but Mizi’s family wasn’t keen for her to continue doing live streams, so that’s probably not going to happen anytime soon. Whatever it is, I just don’t find him trustworthy.
“I suspect that Boss Wang is trying to convince me and Mizi to sign on by dangling a carrot in front of us, using the rewards and earnings as his bargaining chips!
“I’d rather not take the money than continue working with that fellow. I just know that I would definitely regret it in the future if I were to give in now.
“As long as you’re willing to take us in, I guarantee that Da Gang, Xiaodai, Mizi, and I would definitely work for you!”
Wang Yan was finding it more and more interesting. Liu Yuanfang seemed to have dug a hole for himself by taking advantage of petty gains.
But they… did they trust him this much?
Ling Ya gazed at him adoringly, a sweet smile adorning her face. She was this close to worshipping the ground he walked on.
“How could you compare yourself to him, Mr. Wang?
“You’re much more generous than he is!”
“You spent two hundred thousand without flinching and didn’t even bother trying to claim your share from Liu Yuanfang.
“You may look a bit cold on the outside, but I feel like you’re a very kind and warm-hearted person on the inside. You didn’t keep a single indigestion relief tablet for yourself…”
Ding, compliment number one.
“Actually, we were all aware that you didn’t have a good appetite. You organized this event just to eat with us… sigh. In the end, you didn’t even take any of the tablets that you must have spent a lot of money producing. Instead, you chose to help us. I was so moved…”
Ding, compliment number two.
Eh?!
Wait a minute!
What the heck was she talking about?!
Wang Yan was at a loss for words. What the hell had been going through this girl’s mind?!
Looking at Wang Yan’s expression, Ling Ya was even more certain that she had managed to convince him. Thus, she started laying it on thick, so much so that she almost moved herself to tears.
“Whatever it is, I only trust you! Because I know you wouldn’t begrudge us anything, and you’re neither greedy or lecherous… Mm, you’re an upright gentleman!”
Ding, compliment number three.
“Please take us in! You have the meat, and we’ll just drink the soup!”
Haha!
Wang Yan snorted inwardly.
“You finally revealed your true intentions, huh?” he thought.
“You were just sounding me out with that crap about following me, right?
“How sly of you!”