This morning, after Su Su finished a discussion with a partner from Aoxiang, she received a call from her lawyer, Gui Nan.
"President Gu, the contract with Biyi Studio has been completely resolved. Not only will they not sue us, but they've also agreed to only charge the fee for publishing," Gui Nan said with a light tone. "You can rest assured."
Su Su could hardly believe it, expecting some compensation even if it didn't go to court.
"If it's such good news, wasn't their boss, Mr. Yu, abroad and dragging this matter out?"
"You might not know this, but Mr. Yu returned to Lancheng a few days ago, and this is his decision," Gui Nan continued. "Mr. Yu from their side said that before the formal settlement, he'd like to meet with you to sign the settlement agreement in person."
"Oh, that's only proper," Su Su replied. "Did he mention when he'd like to meet?"
Gui Nan said, "Mr. Yu wants to resolve this before the end of the year, depending on your schedule."
"Certainly. Please arrange for him to meet me tomorrow, and you can come with me," Su Su said, wanting to settle this quickly as it had dragged on for too long.
"Alright, both lawyers will be present when signing the settlement agreement."
After hanging up, Su Su couldn't help but suspect that Yu Wei's kindness might have ulterior motives.
She had already learned from Tian Yi that Yu Wei was actually Sasa's person.
She remembered the famous star Sasa. When she was close to Yang Sijie, she had met Sasa a few times. Sasa bore a slight resemblance to her and harbored hostility towards her. Back then, when she was working for someone else, Sasa had deliberately made things difficult for her, demanding a million yuan in compensation from the start. It was only when Mark stopped Sasa that she learned Sasa was Yang Sijie's associate.
Later, she had no further contact with Sasa, but when Yang Sijie tried to break her and Tian Yi up, the woman in the compromising video he sent to Tian Yi was Sasa, not her. This indicated that Sasa had maintained contact with Yang Sijie, merely being summoned and dismissed at his whim.
Now that Yang Sijie was gone, Sasa was still causing trouble for her. What surprised her most was that Xie Qining, after abandoning Lan Yu, married Sasa. It was truly a case of enemies meeting.
After meeting Yu Wei tomorrow, she wanted to see what tricks they had up their sleeves. Since she already knew they meant trouble, she would be on her guard.
When she went to the hospital that evening, she didn't mention this to Tian Yi to avoid worrying him. Some things she couldn't always rely on him for; as long as she didn't act impulsively, she could handle many matters herself.
The meeting took place at one of Yu Wei's art galleries. Su Su took the opportunity to admire some of the displayed works. Having studied art and painting, she had some appreciation for calligraphy and paintings. The paintings in Yu Wei's gallery were all considered fine pieces. It was hard to imagine that someone who appeared so artistic on the outside would collude with Sasa.
Su Su and Gui Nan had almost finished touring the gallery when Yu Wei and his lawyer finally arrived, fashionably late. Upon arrival, he led Su Su into a spacious and bright office, and his lawyer presented the settlement agreement. Su Su personally reviewed it before handing it over to Gui Nan.
"President Gu, there are no issues," Gui Nan confirmed after a thorough examination.
Yu Wei smiled and said, "President Gu, can you sign it now?" He then handed her a ready-to-use pen.
Su Su took the pen but didn't sign immediately. She asked curiously, "When Mr. Yu came to the studio to cause trouble last time, you were determined to make me pay. Why have you changed your mind now? I'd like to know the reason."
Yu Wei appeared somewhat annoyed and said, "I want to settle all matters in Lancheng as soon as possible and focus on my overseas business. In fact, even if you paid double the compensation, it would only be a small sum, insignificant compared to my international business."
"Oh, oh." Su Su didn't believe his reason. Weren't he and Sasa targeting her? Why would they so easily let go of the opportunity to make her pay?
Yu Wei asked, "President Gu, are there any other issues?"
With Gui Nan's confirmation, the settlement agreement should be fine. Regardless of their intentions, she would resolve this contract first.
"No, let's sign," she said, and both she and Yu Wei signed the settlement agreement simultaneously.
As Su Su was putting away the settlement agreement and preparing to leave, Yu Wei casually remarked, "It was all that Sophie's fault. If it weren't for her, we wouldn't have had such a misunderstanding."
Su Su smiled and didn't respond.
Yu Wei continued, "However, I met her abroad recently. She had actually gone abroad. I only found out now that she's quite promiscuous and specifically does business with men."
Su Su froze. Sophie had clearly been taken away by the police. How could Yu Wei have met her abroad? What did he mean by saying that?
"What does 'doing business with men' mean?" Gui Nan asked, not understanding.
As Yu Wei was about to explain, Su Su interrupted, "Mr. Yu, regardless, Sophie is still my good friend. I hope you won't ruin her reputation outside. We can arrange another time to discuss matters concerning her privately."
Gui Nan understood and said no more.
Yu Wei, feigning indignation, said, "Sasa betrays you like this, and you still consider her a friend. You should personally go abroad and bring her back to make her pay the price."
"We'll see," Su Su replied, not exposing his lie. "Where in the world did you see her?"
"Paris," Yu Wei answered without hesitation.
Su Su said, "Oh. She's a native of Paris, so it's likely she fled there. We can discuss the specifics next time we meet."
She picked up her bag, gave Yu Wei a slight smile, and signaled Gui Nan that they could leave.
After they left the gallery, Su Su asked Gui Nan again, "There are absolutely no problems with this settlement agreement, right? The contract issue is settled?"
Gui Nan nodded affirmatively. "President Gu, don't you trust my professional capabilities?"
"That's good then."
It seemed Yu Wei wasn't playing tricks with the contract but had other schemes in mind. What was his ulterior motive in lying to her about Sophie being in Paris?
Gui Nan asked with some curiosity, "The Sophie that Mr. Yu mentioned, is she the designer who signed the contract without authorization? President Gu, don't you blame her?"
"She was also misled in this matter," Su Su said calmly. "Since it didn't cause significant losses to the studio, let it go. No matter where she is, as long as she's doing well, that's fine."
Gui Nan smiled and said, "President Gu, it's truly fortunate to be your employee."
Su Su smiled and asked him, "What about you? Have you considered coming to work for me as a legal consultant?"
"President Gu, you flatter me," Gui Nan replied humbly, still noncommittal.
Su Su stated with determination, "The studio is increasingly involved in legal matters, and we really need a legal consultant. The salary I'm offering you is definitely higher than at your current law firm, and you'll receive year-end bonuses. What do you think?"