For the next half month, Ding Yun did nothing but list the things she needed to sell on second-hand trading platforms. She devoted herself wholeheartedly to recuperating and exercising, striving to regain her health as quickly as possible to face future challenges.
Work, her troublesome family, and the system's trial period could all be set aside for now. If any complications arose, she would deal with them as they came. Without a healthy body, how could she even stand a chance in a confrontation, or even an argument?
While Ding Yun could accept the temporary lack of income and a frugal lifestyle, her parents and younger brother couldn't. As the saying goes, it's easy to go from frugality to luxury, but difficult to go from luxury to frugality. Ever since they learned their daughter had become a star and was earning a lot of money, Zhou E and her husband immediately quit their jobs, demanded her bank card and savings, and insisted she send them a hundred thousand yuan each month for their retirement and daily expenses. Who wouldn't want a comfortable life? Everyone knows how to enjoy and spend money.
It was only after the original host showed them her bank statements, company contracts, and her agent's intimidating cooperation, stating that they would sue for compensation if their antics caused damage to her client's commercial value, that they reduced the amount to fifty thousand. Coincidentally, the original host's agent and agency didn't want her to have too much money. They worried that if she had substantial savings, she might have other ideas, like switching agencies or starting her own business. Keeping her strapped for cash would ensure she remained under their control. Therefore, they cooperated and persuaded the original host to agree.
From then on, the original host began the monthly "offering" of fifty thousand yuan, and this was not even fixed. On holidays, birthdays, and other occasions, her parents would come up with new ways to ask for money.
With the money, Zhou E and her family didn't think about saving for the future but immediately started living a lavish life. They sent all their clothes to the dry cleaners, ate out at hotels instead of home, and didn't even bother with small restaurants. Their food, drink, and general expenses all saw a significant improvement. Even their son's living expenses at university skyrocketed, from around fifteen to two thousand yuan a month, to twelve to twenty thousand, and then to thirty to forty thousand when he started dating.
The only expenditure that could vaguely be considered an investment was buying a house. This was done by emptying out all the money the original host had saved over the past few years for a down payment on her own apartment. The money was paid by the original host, but the house was occupied by them.
Having grown accustomed to a good life, Zhou E and her family were naturally unwilling to endure hardship again. Even though they knew their daughter's income would surely plummet after her public image collapsed, they didn't curb their daily expenses. They continued to eat and drink as usual, living paycheck to paycheck. The money that was gone was the money Ding Yun sent them each month, followed by their calls demanding she quickly send the fifty thousand, as they were in urgent need.
This month was no exception. By noon on the twelfth, seeing no remittance notification, Zhou E became anxious and immediately called, intending to question her daughter about not sending the money and whether she had followed her instructions. Then, she discovered the phone was unreachable.
Through her experiences in various worlds, Ding Yun knew that some parents could be reasoned with, some were impossible to communicate with, and some were worse than animals. Based on the original host's memories alone, Ding Yun didn't expect her parents to have any conscience. If they contacted her, it would only be for trouble. Therefore, on the evening she finished processing the memories, Ding Yun blocked them all. It was no wonder Zhou E couldn't get through.
Initially, Zhou E didn't suspect she had been blocked by her daughter. She even somewhat hesitantly opened her phone's memo, carefully checked the number, and after comparing it two or three times and finding no issues, she dialed it repeatedly. Only then did she suspect something might have happened. She quickly called her husband and son, asking them to try calling as well. Finally, their son, Xu Pengcheng, discovered through information found online that it wasn't that they couldn't reach her, but that they had been blocked. He informed Zhou E.
This undoubtedly greatly stimulated Zhou E: "What? Blocked? This little brat has the audacity to block all of us! What does she think she's doing? Is she trying to resist or rebel?" At the same time, Xu Pengcheng and his father, Xu Dayang, had visibly grim expressions, even described as gloomy.
"How could this happen?"
"Dad, Mom, could it be that Sister really has no money? After all, it must be hard for her to get any work now, right? And I heard she has to pay a large sum to the brands she previously signed with. Is that why she blocked us?"
"If that's the case, what do we do? I wish I had become a celebrity too. If I were a celebrity, I definitely wouldn't be as useless as my sister!"
Zhou E was still in a fit of rage: "No money? How could she have no money? I specifically searched online. People online say that negative attention is still attention. As long as people are paying attention, how could she have no money? Doing micro-business, being an influencer, finding sugar daddies, aren't these all ways to make money? I think she's being stubborn and ungrateful. I don't know who gave her the courage. Her agency and agent are also useless. They took so much profit and did nothing. If they hadn't taken so much money, we would have tens of millions by now. Ah, this makes me so angry... No, I must find that brat quickly. We can't let her get out of control. Even if the situation is bad, we must bring her back. She was a celebrity, so asking for a few million in betrothal gifts wouldn't be too much, right? Yes, we need to find that girl quickly."
In reality, Zhou E knew her daughter's situation might not be good, but she didn't want to admit it. She also wanted to pressure her daughter, thinking she might find a sugar daddy or marry into a wealthy family. Now that her wish was dashed, she had to settle for the next best thing. The hope of settling for the next best thing was to at least get her daughter married off, which would not only bring in a huge betrothal gift but also prevent her daughter from becoming completely penniless. Once married, her husband's money would be hers, and it would be natural for her to subsidize her parents, after all, they gave her life. The debt of birth and upbringing combined, how could it ever be repaid?